~777~

Tifa couldn't help her feelings of inadequacy as of late- And just as she thought she was finally gaining back some of that confident momentum too.

For the last week ever since their departure from Nibelheim, it seemed nothing she said could get through to Cloud. The most she got out of him was nods of acknowledgement and his usual attentiveness whenever Tifa had the nerve to speak aloud her rarely heard thoughts. Those moments in particular, he was his most observant- and while endearing, something about the masked quality of his expressions was just off-putting. He encouraged her more out-going behavior, and enforced his support in small ways and little gestures.

But whenever he seemed to be in need of some kind of help himself, Tifa could only feel like she can give so much before its considered simply not enough. Its like he shuts himself down before she could find the words; effectively ending it before it starts. Cloud doesn't accept help; he only gives it- and its a trait he's carried with him for so long now. Its something Tifa admittedly wanted to bull-doze right through; once she had the proper know-how.

After their rendezvous with Cloud, Cait Sith and Aerith, the group realized they had become nine strong (if you include Shera). And although the latter woman isn't going to be an active part of their entourage per se, she definitely concreted that she'll support AVALANCHE in whatever way she could- from her new home in Cosmo Canyon. And while Tifa was a little apprehensive of the idea of involving anyone else in their ever increasingly violent battles with Shinra, she couldn't help feeling a bit cheered that they've garnered some more support.

From where they'd go from here, that was another story entirely: Because of what happened to Palmer, Cloud proposed they go somewhere where Shinra wouldn't feel inclined to follow; a place they're not known to bother. At first, the initial recommendation was to briefly revisit Cosmo Canyon; as Shera had to go there anyways. Another idea was to head straight North to the Bone village- but Yuffie pressed super hard for them to head to Wutai instead.

This didn't seem a very feasible idea to pretty much ninety-five percent of the group though. Shinra and Wutai had bad blood between them- that much pretty much everybody and their mom knew. Shinra had no qualms about invading their territory for whatever reason they felt was worth indulging- and especially as of recently. If Shinra ever caught word that AVALANCHE headed there to hide out, they'd likely start to believe that their lies may have some true merit to it after all- not to mention unnecessarily draw attention to the already devastated country.

So no, Wutai wasn't a much of an option; but it didn't stop Cloud and Yuffie from butting heads anyways. It was a yelling match that nearly made history at first, but it eventually did when Barret decided to include his very loud and profound opinions. He and Cloud adamantly told Yuffie that heading there simply didn't fit the bill; and that heading to the vast wilderness up North would be more feasible. However, there was one reason in particular that the match didn't end right then.

"Wutai has TONS of wilderness we can hide in too! And guess what?" Yuffie waved one dramatic hand in front of her like she was gesticulating to the entire panorama around them. She then snapped both to her hips as she went on, "-It just so happens that I know it like the back of my hand! If we went to hide out North, we'd get lost within the day! But if we camp out in Wutai, at least we'd been navigating territory I know!" She jumped in place; her every gesture enthusiastic, and then jabbed a finger out to Cloud in particular, "Besides! Wutai's got jungles even the big-bad SOLDIER has gotten lost in! Surely you know about that?"

Cloud's lips thinned, his arms tightly folded across his chest. Tifa watched him clench and unclench his jaw for a seconds before he huffed in resignation.

"...Yeah, I heard the stories about SOLDIER disappearances in Wutai's forests," he said with a snort; bobbing his shoulders next. "-Hell, there was even a guy that went AWOL during the war who used the hundreds of miles of land as a cover... but that still doesn't mean we should book it there anyways. We don't need to be giving Shinra a valid reason to believe their own bull-shit story about AVALANCHE havin' connections with 'em. Aren't you worried about the implification of that at all?"

Yuffie pouted out her lip, but didn't deny it. She looked away and carefully considered his words; something she doesn't usually give much thought to. However, she still went on to say, "...Well, of course I'm worried about that! But let's be honest here- Shinra's gonna try to go to war with Wutai again anyways, regardless if its related to us or not." Her stare hardened, "-But its also why I wanna go anyways; cuz that's something I know, but not my family. Yunno?"

Cloud and Barret passed each other looks; with the latter going on to ask rather gruffly, "Wait, they don't know Shinra's planning on doin' that?"

"No... they don't," Yuffie confirmed grimly, losing all signs of her earlier cheer.

"What, you can't just call 'em or something?" Cloud queried.

"My dad's... pretty old fashioned," Yuffie heaved dramatically, her expression now irritated. "He doesn't have a phone. I could write him a letter, but we'd be there a heck of a lot quicker than any kind of post we coulda sent. I only learned about this myself when we first met-" She blew some of her hair out of her face, looking rather put-out. "-And even if I did send a letter right after we met, I don't think it woulda made it. You guys know how people feel about Wutai- especially since Shinra does its best to interfere with the mailing system. They woulda found the message and routed it out to my family."

Cait Sith sighed nearby, "Aye, that's true. Shinra's going to tap into any kind of postal service they can simply because if they see any kind of mention of Wutain name, they'll automatically think it suspicious. So a name like 'Kisaragi' on a piece of paper is sure to be scrutinized. And with your link to AVALANCHE now-" The feline hung his head, "Shinra's definitely going to try to look for anything relating to you in any system anywhere."

Cloud narrowed his eyes nonetheless, "Yunno, you coulda stood to mention that in the first place. We would've helped you get to Wutai a helluva lot sooner instead of meanderin' about the whole rest of the world on a Sephiroth-hunt that apparently didn't work out."

Yuffie actually blinked at him at this, if disbelievingly. She had her turn to narrow her eyes here, "You guys haven't even known me that long! Its not like I coulda asked a buncha complete strangers to help me get back to Wutai upon hearing this." She waved them all off, but her eyes were still on Cloud when she said, "How am I supposed to know you guys would want to help me with this anyways? You always acted like you don't generally care."

Cloud opened his mouth to immediately retort, but Tifa placed a hand on his shoulder before he could find the words. "I think what she means is, with almost all of us here having some sort of past link to Shinra, she wouldn't have felt inclined to have trusted us with something this important- especially since we really haven't known each other that long." She made a face as she reasoned, "And while AVALANCHE has always been anti-Shinra, not all of its factions are entirely trustworthy; and we're not known for recruiting many Wutain members."

She nodded, "Yeah! That's right!"

Cloud retained his acrimonious air, "-You still coulda left at any point to go tell your dad or whoever, instead of staying with us this whole time."

Yuffie's hands went back to her hips, "You guys were headed west anyways. And frankly, you have a freaking spy machine right there-" She pointed at Cait Sith. "-All of my most recent Intel woulda came from him. If he said that Shinra was mobilizing its forces at any moment, I woulda left anyways; with or without you guys!"

Cloud relented here, although his expression still contained some hint of his wariness and intermingling suspicion that Tifa herself didn't quite understand.

With that said, they decided they'll drop by Wutai after helping Shera to the Nibel borders. All the while they were cooking up dinner over their open fire that same night, Cloud and Barret discussed their swiftest route with Cid. Cait Sith made helpful inputs according to whatever new news he got on Shinra's movements and where they're heading.

It was at the same time that Aerith had offered to go on another walk with Tifa; seemingly out of nowhere. Her eyes were increasingly more livid with their natural emerald glow; fervent with a vivacious energy that leapt and surged with barely contained excitement. Eagerly, she grabbed Tifa's hand and whisked her towards the beach; not too far from where the Tiny Bronco was parked. Tifa couldn't help wondering where all his energy was coming from; especially since today had been more than just a little chaotic.

But boy oh boy, the things the other woman had to say...

"Tifa, you were absolutely right!" She jubilantly cheered as they meandered towards the waves; letting their bare feet sink into the sands and gently lapping waters. She whirled happily about on the tips of her toes with the grace of a professional ballet dancer; suddenly blurting with an excitement that's likely built throughout the day, "-That masked Turk really IS Zack!"

Tifa, while curious about how Cloud's team had managed to handle the whole Palmer thing (he hadn't had the time to explain it yet), she certainly hadn't expected this as an added bonus to their busy day: The former bar-tender physically stopped to fully absorb this fact; feeling very much like she just got thrown into a solid brick wall by a charging behemoth in the middle of its Must season.

"...No way," she mouthed disbelievingly, mouth flapping open. "You're kidding me-?"

"Freaking flaming hedgehog pies on a skewer Tifa, why would I joke about this? I am sooo not kidding-" Aerith pumped her arms and grinned as belatedly as she can possibly manage without actually splitting her face in two. She seized Tifa's hands and bounced in place, her jovial energy quite contagious. Tifa couldn't help smiling herself as Aerith said, "-That man really is Zack in a disguise! He really is alive! Oh great Minerva... I couldn't be any happier, or more relieved-"

Tifa cupped Aerith's suddenly jittery hands within her own, matching her joy with something similar. "I-" she trailed off, at first. "...I'm just really... wow. I can't actually believe that..."

"Yeah, I know!" Aerith giddily reciprocated. "Isn't this great?"

Tifa's fragile elation fizzled abruptly away, feeling her initial shock wear off in favor of something akin to suspicious trepidation. "Well yeah, sure," she nodded, still being as genuine as she could with her muddled thoughts. "-But now I can't help wondering why Zack is even hanging around those guys- especially after the whole Sector Seven incident; or you getting abducted by them."

Aerith mellowed as well, pursing her lip somewhat. She gave a slight shake of the head, "...I don't think Zack even knew about the Turks' direct involvement with the plate fall. Cloud even threw it in his face and he acted like someone just told him his first-born child died or something. The look on his face was hard to ignore- well, from what I could see." Her brows knitted neatly at this, "Erm, more like his eyes gave it away; and he was silent for a real long time. I'm pretty sure Tseng didn't tell him this."

While Tifa found this information somewhat insightful as it was suspicious, she couldn't help asking instead, "Wha- Cloud saw him too-?"

Aerith did that little waving flick of her right wrist to help dismiss the previous query. "No no. Zack kept the mask on when Cloud was around. Its only until after he left us alone did he remove it." She tucked her hands into each other, her expression troubled. "While he couldn't explain anything to me, Zack said he needed to keep it on around Cloud. And seeing as Cloud doesn't remember Zack, I can't help thinking he's leaving it on pretty much for Cloud's sole benefit. Remember how I told you Cloud reacted to Zack's name before we arrived in Gongaga?"

Tifa nodded thoughtfully at this, and then meandered helplessly about before continuing her walk along the beach. Aerith matched her pace as Tifa said, "So... you said Zack didn't know about the Turks' part in the disaster...? Like, he really was genuinely thrown off by this?"

Aerith nodded, "Zack's emotions are something he wears on his sleeves; even when he's trying to hide them. Mind you, he never did know how to properly conceal how he feels a lot of the time- especially if you already know what to look for. If its not in his face, its in his voice. And if its not in either of those places, its in his hands and physical gestures." She inclined her head, placing a delicate digit upon her lower lip, "But still, it makes you wonder though... I wonder how much information Tseng is actually sharing with him?"

"Like that isn't worrying at all," Tifa airily added on with a roll of the eyes. "I thought Zack was friends with Tseng?"

"While he's never denied that," Aerith elaborated, her frown cementing itself into being. "Its never meant that Zack has ever fully trusted Tseng- if at all. Back before his deployment to Nibelheim, he always encouraged me to tell him if the Turks were giving me any trouble. And if they did- he specifically told me to let him know so he could do something about it. Although..."

Aerith started tugging at her wrists as she weighed her next words, "Zack did seem really apprehensive of the idea of me knowing about him... For that first while that I talked to him, he didn't even try to clue me in- or tell me how he physically felt." Aerith's frown deepened, "-He knows I would've healed him if he just asked. It didn't matter if he was or wasn't a real Turk- because even the Turks know I'd help them if their lives were in any real danger. I'd heal him is he was or wasn't a Turk, regardless."

"You're a better person than me," Tifa muttered more to herself than anything, upon remembering her feelings towards Tseng in particular.

"Huh?"

"Er- its nothing," Tifa shrugged off. "Just thinking out loud here."

Aerith raised another dainty brow, but didn't press the issue.

Tifa meanwhile felt her eyes wander to the sands; the waning moon's overhead light just enough so she can see the details along the shore. She sometimes caught the occasional sand flea, scuttling crab, or the distant calls of seabirds; which drew her eyes further along the shore where she could just make out their blackened outlines as they hovered along ocean winds.

She looked back up at Aerith after a fluttering second spent letting this portent sink in. "-Didn't you just say 'Heal him'-?" she quoted distantly.

The Cetra's gaze sobered almost immediately, "He has a breathing problem that he's deliberately trying to sweep under the rug- and I caught the words 'meds' and 'Hendel' when he got a phone call from Cissnei. I believe Hendel is his doctor's name." Her eyes flashed her concern on several degrees, at this. She then gestured, but wasn't quite able to properly convey an adept visualization of said condition as she went on, "-His chest also had this wispy, rattling sound to it. And he had no color in his face and lips other than spotty redness from the heat. He really didn't look that good..."

"Why would Tseng let Zack run around in that condition if its really that bad?" Tifa shook her head, finding it somewhat difficult to imagine a man as physically imposing as Zack would be hindered in such a way. From her brief acquaintance with him, Tifa had figured the man almost as much as an untouchable power-house as Sephiroth- watching first-hand how he dealt with the monsters on Mount Nibel. He didn't need to be lethal to be efficient.

"I don't think he has much of a choice," Aerith shrugged. "Once Zack decides he wants to do something, he's going to do it- no matter what anyone says or how he physically feels about it. Even when he's got holes in him, he'll strut around like nothing is wrong. And frankly, I don't think even the Turks have a say in whatever he does or doesn't do- no matter his supposed friendship with them."

Tifa somehow found this funnily adequate; seeing as it meant that Zack wasn't the kind of person to let himself be controlled by the Turks in any way. Although, his out-going behavior would certainly prove detrimental to his own health- and this worry was something she knew Aerith was going to internalize.

"...I understand that he didn't have much time to explain anything to me- seeing as Cissnei was on her way-" Aerith glanced off into the darkness before her, "-But he could've at least let me try to properly help him. I mean, I did heal him anyways, but even I don't know how effective its going to be if he doesn't stop to relax. He knows from past experiences that I can do a little more than his doctor- given he doesn't try anything too drastic."

Her earlier, aforementioned excitement had certainly all but died now; and so swiftly at that. She sighed wistfully. "...He didn't explicitly tell me that he had a doctor out-right either. Although, I could imagine that the same man whose treating him would be treating Cloud as well," she passed Tifa a somewhat subdued, but slightly happier glance. "-Which is something I've been really excited to tell you: that Cloud is finally getting some medical help as we speak. Remember when you and Cloud were attacked at Runen?"

Tifa shook her head, finding this spill of information almost entirely over-whelming in general- let alone this. "His blood," she murmured more or less to herself. "Zack took Cloud's blood as a means of-"

"-As a means of treating him. I know!" Aerith gently grabbed Tifa's hand and gave it a slightly enthusiastic shake, as she did before. "Cloud is actually getting the care he needs! Frankly, I couldn't be more relieved."

"But... but that would mean there's actually something really wrong with him- if Zack feels like its something he has to stay around the Turks for," Tifa said cautiously.

Aerith immediately let the other woman go again; suddenly and reflexively folding her hands at her front in a brief show of her unease. "Zack said he had something called 'J-Cell toxicosis'- which apparently causes all of Cloud's headaches and what-not. He also off-handedly hinted that Cloud had suffered from some sort of mild form of Mako poisoning in the past- seeing as mako is used to help treat this sickness. The latter causes his memory loss."

Tifa stopped here altogether, briefly throwing their distant campfire a glance.

Aerith gently bumped her arm with Tifa's, "For the record, Zack said that the next time we see him, hopefully its with something that'll give Cloud a way to treat it in earnest. Its a sickness that only seems to occur in SOLDIER or Hojo's experiments though. So it doesn't seem to be contagious."

"That's not the part I'm worried about," The former bar-tender said, upon remembering Tseng's words back at Gongaga.

"-Ah, so that's what he's been telling you," he almost smugly said. "-Its interesting that he's been telling you this even though its a lie."

"-Hojo literally knows why Cloud's behaving the way he is. Even I can't fully explain it."

"-The name you're looking for is J-cell toxicosis; and its responsible for Cloud's questionable state- assuming he has it. As it is, Hojo wanted to run tests on him when you lot were incarcerated; as he recognized Cloud as a missing test subject-"

"Has Cloud never mentioned anything of the last five years?"

"-Make sure Cloud doesn't do anything life-endangering to himself or to the people around him- namely Aerith."

Tifa hadn't budged for the better part of an entire minute; only just now having recalled this vast jumble of information:

Tseng had indeed conveniently dropped so many truth bombs on her that it had become a disorganized series of recollections with no distinguishing detail standing out more-so than the other. Everything he said was quite damning; and a whole other reason to worry even more. She hadn't known what to tell Aerith first the following day; and she only had an single opportunity to tell her the next time they got that room in Runen. Their following encounter with Zack finished pushing a lot of the details out of her mind.

On the side, its not that Tifa had forgotten it or didn't mention it out of negligence- but more so the fact that she'd placed it in the back of her mind for a little while. Tifa had wondered if the Turk's words were even true; a kind of ruse meant to deliberately frustrate and befuddle her. Having said that, she'd placed the information as far back as she could; deciding not to stress over what might be false information; or because its so worrying within itself that Tifa had no real means of helping Cloud- and it would distract her from her battles to come.

In fact, that same night she told Aerith these details, most of it had steadily trickled away. Tifa had tried to furiously recall as much as she could from that night; although she'd only managed to successfully convey to Aerith that 'Hojo' and 'J-cell something' had been the primary details that stood chief amongst the rest of the fragmented bull-shit. Tifa's budding stress levels had grown in all that time; and it finished driving out whatever other little detail Tseng could've offered.

In all actuality, she'd technically already knew a lot of this information- but Tseng had been pretty clear when he said he hadn't had any means of confirming if it was all true. It was no wonder literally the next night over he'd sent Zack to collect the sample when he did- Even Tseng hadn't been sure of what he told her; and its not like he could've offered his enemy any credible proof- especially since he and Tifa weren't on the best of terms.

Tifa had spaced out long enough to garner Aerith's attention; with the flower merchant going to prod her friend back to sobriety. "Uh, Tifa? Hello there-?" she tried, gently pressing her finger-tips into the other woman's arm.

Tifa blinked off her whirling spiral and turned towards her companion, "Aerith... did Zack say anything else in particular that was... yunno, maybe a little more helpful-?"

Aerith blinked at her, retracting her hand and fisting it over her breast, "Nothing more in regards to Cloud himself, no... But even he said that he didn't much understand Tseng's own personal stakes in this and why he'd want to help Cloud- other than doing it as favor for a friend."

Tifa blinked at this, and then ducked her head down while gouging rows into the moistened sands with her toes. "Out of curiosity," she inquired out of a suddenly intrusive surge of inquisitiveness- and some other misplaced emotion she wasn't quite sure she was identifying correctly. "I know this is a random question and all, but... When you met up with Zack again, did he actually seem happy to see you-? Like... I mean, it has been five years... He didn't seem that different to you, right? Like he still seemed..."

Credible? Trustworthy? Himself?

Instead of voicing these words however, she motioned airily, unsure as to how she could finish the sentence. She didn't want to insult Zack, but she still wasn't sure how she felt about a man who wore a mask in front of his friends and familiars; even if it was for Cloud's own good.

Aerith's following flummoxed appearance couldn't have looked more hilarious- even if it did last only a fleeting second. After the initial shock of this query, she out-right giggled and threw her hands behind her back; grinning all the while. "Well," she tried, her face warming several degrees. "He didn't act like he was disinterested in any way... He may not have acted like it at first, but he left me the impression that he still wanted to pursue our relationship again. His gestures were rather self-explanatory."

She's getting the wrong impression.

Instead of trying to clarify her meaning, Tifa however decided to go with it; even though she felt mixed about it. "...Really?" she said with a raised brow, somehow finding this portent a little impressive on the side. Five years was definitely a long time to be putting a relationship on hold; and the fact that Aerith was still talking so fondly of Zack had to say something for itself. Right?

Aerith folded her hands behind her back and whirled just enough for her dress ends to gently lift in the passing wind, her expression as close to an answer as Tifa was going to get. Although, there was no denying the level of thoughtfulness to it; as if Aerith herself was still carefully considering her previous query. Eventually, she did say as a response to Tifa's query, "I... I'd certainly hope so."

So... is he really that good a person? Tifa couldn't help thinking upon hearing this. Aerith did say he was helping Cloud... but to what end? Is it really because he's genuinely concerned as a friend, or is he really following orders from Tseng?

"...Aerith, can I ask you something else?"

"Yeah?"

Tifa felt her lips thin a bit, and then, "Are you sure Zack is actually, legitimately going out of his way to do this? I know a lot of people talk fondly of him and all, but I'm still not sure what to believe." Tifa's hands went behind her back as well, her toe digging even deeper ruts into the ocean-kissed sand. After muscling up the nerve, she went on to say, "...How do you really know he really isn't an actual Turk whose following orders? I know that's a bad assumption to make and all, but... I dunno what to think-"

Aerith suddenly stepped past Tifa, her eyes following along the foamy details of the warmed waters rolling alongside them. She said, "-The Zack I know doesn't have the emotional fortitude for it. Turks can willingly turn off their emotions so to follow the most hideous of orders- something Zack has never been known to do. In fact, Turks even get special training on how to do this so they can be made more effective. Zack can't even pony up the balls to kill monsters a lot of the time, despite all his SOLDIER conditioning and 'enhancements'."

Tifa looked away, remembering the Mt. Nibel expedition again. This much information seemed to hold true, at least.

Aerith meanwhile went on, "-Turks are living weapons that never needed the 'special surgery' to do their jobs. Moreover, when I saw Zack's reaction to Cloud's words about the plate fall, it just concreted it for me-" She turned sharply, her eyes steeled, "Tseng isn't telling everything to him on purpose- so to spare Zack the emotional baggage that naturally comes with being a Turk. If Zack was actually training to be one, Tseng wouldn't have cut corners him just because they're 'friends'." She shook her head almost furiously, "He'd let Zack know exactly what he's in for when it comes to being a true Turk. You'd need all the emotional training you can get."

Tifa hummed noncommittally at this, moving a thoughtful hand to her chin.

Aerith's following smile was a more tender one, "Even Tseng has admitted to me a long time ago that Zack's superiors gave him flak about his losing focus- which is just another way of saying he lets his emotions rule his judgement. If he really is a genuine Turk recruit, he wouldn't have been so shocked about their part in the Sector Seven disaster, and he would've been wearing some kind of variant of their uniform on the side." Aerith bobbed her shoulders, the ocean sea-breeze tugging playfully at her braid, "-If Zack really is one, he would've saved Palmer from Cloud too. Right?"

Tifa nodded, folding her arms in consideration of this. But still, she couldn't help thinking. If someone like Zack really is the kind of person who cares THAT much about another... wouldn't he theoretically still be the kind of person whose willing to become the bad guy in order to save what he loves? How many people could he have hurt, or was willing to hurt, just to get to this point-? Assuming he's done that-

...Hm, or maybe not... Maybe he IS just that good of a person; as incredibly unbelievable as that is. But... No one is THAT good a person; its just not realistic. And I know even I'm no exemption from that rule... Not after having helped plant reactor bombs and ruining people's lives for the sake of revenge.

"-Although," Aerith trailed off somewhat ruefully, interrupting Tifa's sideways doubts. "-I admittedly can't help thinking about how different he felt... Like whatever barrier that had stood between us before is now some sort of great, yawning gap that can't be crossed in any way." Her fingers twiddled around their respective opposites behind her back, "He was acting so weird... I can't quite describe it."

She shook her head, "And his appearance aside... He wouldn't admit it out loud, but I can see what the effects of what the last five years has done to him. Besides his irregular breathing and detached behavior, I can't help wondering if Cloud isn't the only one whose paid Hojo's lab a visit." Her gaze locked upon a certain, invisible object only she can see; her beryl gaze miles away. "-Now, I don't know if that's true in any way, but I couldn't help thinking it... It would explain why he hasn't come back in so long..."

Tifa felt her own uncertain gaze wander across the undulating, obsidian waves as well. The diamond-edged, moon-dotted foam tips a constant flurry of glinting spears pitching too and fro in the weary dark; a roiling ripple of shifting gems cut from the same stone.

"...You think he's an experiment of Hojo's too?" she lowly offered.

"Hm. Him and Cloud. Maybe. Not that he told me this directly."

Tifa once again focused her gaze on their distant campfire, finding this information more upsetting than anything: As it meant that Zack not only knew something was wrong with Cloud, but he was hiding himself and his information from both his and Cloud's respective familiars. He was selectively choosing to keep secrets; not even willingly seeking out his girl-friend and her healing help after five whole years had gone by. Tifa also couldn't help remembering Greg's words; her thoughts as to help reason for Zack's new and reclusive nature may have some sort of good reason in its existence:

"Well... if my boy's like me when I was his age, he wouldn't have wanted to keep a lady friend waitin'; especially somebody as kind as you. If he did quit Shinra, he'd gone straight back to you in Midgar. But if he ran into some sorta trouble, he wouldn't have wanted to bring it around you or us for that matter. He'd avoid us if Shinra's as bad about desertions as I hear."

Tifa folded her arms again, wishing she knew for certain what this all meant. Its bad enough that Zack was choosing to stay with the Turks and risk exposure; if this was really the case.

"Yunno," Aerith eventually went on, once again hijacking the conspiracy train Tifa was about to board. "Maybe you should go and talk to Cloud."

"Huh-?" Tifa snapped out of her thoughtful daze, only to blink in mild confusion at the other.

Aerith turned to face Tifa entirely; her expression this troubling mix of wistful concern and something else the former bar-tender just couldn't put a label on. Perhaps doleful serenity- if that made any sense. Over and over, these influx of misunderstood sensations lapped into view; only to elude and frustrate Tifa with their intangibility.

"When you have a moment, you should go talk to him-" Aerith jerked her head at the direction of their camp-site; visible only by the glittering speck that was their fire. "I know Cloud could certainly do with the company- with somebody he's never had any true qualms of opening up to."

Tifa dipped her head; almost shamefully at that. "...I've been trying to talk to Cloud for a while, but he doesn't seem to be interested in conversation. He just flashes hot and cold so much-" she huffed.

Aerith stepped closer to Tifa, even being so boldest as to reach for the other woman's gloved hand and cupping it within her own. "I know, but you gotta keep trying," she almost beseeched. "...And while Cloud can be difficult, he's most likely to open up to you more so than anyone else. If its any consolation, I think he inwardly appreciates the attempts you put towards trying to talk to him."

"You think so?"

"I don't see why not," Aerith shrugged. "I'm just saying; I know there may not be too much you two could talk about, but I think your company is all that matters to him. I say you give it a go and keep doing what you're doing." Her smile returned with this glowing, sunny warmth that could only gently kiss skin; a gesture that could never burn. "Go talk to him; walk with him- Something. It may not have to be tonight, but I'm telling you that the sooner you try, the better you'll both feel. You probably don't even have to say anything at all, for all we know. Sometimes the silence is enough."

"Huh-?"

Aerith squeezed Tifa's hand; the grip something akin to motherly. Tifa could only look between their shared skin and her more intense eyes; the verdant greens a subtle, phantom glow in the gentle darkness.

Eventually Aerith let go and turned towards their camp fully, deciding that the conversation was at an abrupt end. She paused to say over her shoulder, "You don't need to worry so much. I know that in time, Cloud will come out of that hard shell himself- Whether or not Zack helps his ailment or you wheedle your way in. And when that day happens, the fog that separates him from you will clear."

Aerith smiled rather whimsically; and then she bustled her way across the sands in cheery, if not elegant silence. Tifa could only look on in mild confusion, her mind landing upon the mystifying concept of Aerith's sense of hardened confidence and where she could've gotten it. Whether or not its something she learned from Zack or from some other unforeseen event eluded her.

One thing was for sure though- Tifa knew her desire for a solidifying and constant comfort to remain rooted into her life was an unrealistic notion. But, perhaps not so much so if she had Cloud there to help her fill it.

Minerva only knows if she could do the same for him.

~777~

-At the same time-

He couldn't do it.

He just... couldn't.

He really didn't have the balls to do it.

When push came to shove, Zack had truly considered using his shape-shift materia to conceal himself from Aerith, but after everything he's been through (not to mention his lack of ability of to properly lie, per se), he wouldn't have managed to successfully pull it off- Let alone do this to AERITH of all people.

Not that he could, of course. Because to be fair, Aerith was damn near physic whenever it came to him, and it low-key weirded him out. Ah, but he always did think normal was over-rated now, didn't he?

On the side, when Cissnei picked him up, the first thing she'd noticed was just how well off Zack was. He was still clearly exhausted, but he showed no signs or symptoms of any of his ailments- minus the usual colorless complexion and sweating more than usual (something that's attributed to his wearing warm, heavy, dark clothes during summer-level heat). The girl had whipped out her borrowed stethoscope from the medical kit Hendel gave her quicker than Zack ever remembered; racing around him in a furious tizzy and checking for any other abnormalities- to which he had none.

None!

Upon seeing him like this, the first thing Cissnei did was ask him about the mission and what he did; to which Zack reciprocated that he'd rather explain it when they're behind closed doors. Cissnei thankfully agreed and the trio loaded onto the bird; with Zack nodding off in his seat not ten minutes there-after into the ride. Cissnei wouldn't be getting her answers until they checked into a hotel later that same night.

To keep a low profile, Cissnei used straight, physical gil to pay for their rooms instead of using her card; something Shinra would no doubt track electronically. The trio was now resting at some kind of sea-side town just a little further north of Rocket Town; only some couple of hours after picking up Zack. This town was pretty meager and small compared to the Costa Del Sol and Junon; but a place that traded frequently with the Bone Village and Icycle areas sitting just a little further north.

Cissnei had to order a single room; and its a relatively small space that was built similarly to the hotel room in Nibelheim. Three beds, a single bathroom, and with all the basic amenities. The hotel was a little shoddy on the side; but a place no one would go looking for them from Shinra headquarters.

And now, some few hours after getting picked up, Zack found himself sitting on the middle bed; naked from the waist-up. Cissnei continuously and studiously surveyed his weary form; pursing her lip and shaking her head. She's been checking Zack over and over for the last while; trying to wrap her head around this baffling phenomena before her. She stood back, shook her head some more, and then went right back to inspecting him. She'd kept tapping him with her stethoscope; checking his breathing and general pain sensitivity. Upon seeing no reaction, she frowned and wrinkled her nose in that sneezing kitten-like way.

Eventually, she seemed to find herself at some sort of mental impasse and promptly seated herself on the bed. She sat within Zack's own personal bubble- something he never imagined her outwardly and willingly initiating first since she's usually pretty clear about her level of comfort within a certain distance of another person. She locked eyes with him; her cool topaz stare boring straight into his naked soul like she was his little shoulder angel silently judging his every action.

"...Okay. So now, I'm at a complete and total loss," she began. She clapped her hands together and gesticulated with a downward, slicing motion, "...Just how in the bleeding hell did you almost completely recover from your traumatic pneumothorax in just a span of a few freaking hours... WHILE being in the midst of physically strenuous mission... against Rufus and Palmer's own personally hand-picked SOLDIER guards... WHILE dealing with the aftermath of a plane crash that should've DEFINITELY aggravated your chest?"

She stopped, closed her eyes, huffed, and then added in this brittle monotone, "Like... how in Minerva's holy name did you even do this-? It doesn't make any sense!"

Now, taking his next breath has always been an enduring adversity; a trial that Zack has managed to hold his own against for quite some time now. Weeks had gone by since his release from the hospital; not including the two he'd been in. And even after checking out of the Turk's private hospital, still Zack's breathing difficulties had persisted. Had he taken the time to relax and not go after AVALANCHE as he did, he should've largely healed on his own by now. But he hadn't- which was to be expected, considering his active lifestyle.

Sure, when Aerith had healed him that first time at the Costa Del Sol, he'd admittedly thought he was genuinely getting better. For that whole week after their fateful meeting at the resort, Zack hadn't really paid much notice to his lack of reaction to his dyspnea- something that usually happens to him after large bouts of physical activity. When he hung off of that chandelier in the Shinra Manor foyer that week after meeting Aerith again and nailed that landing from the dismount, he hadn't been that tired at all. For that matter, he hadn't really felt anything after doing random athletic bull-shit like this- And this he thought he could attribute to his natural SOLDIER stamina coming back and not so much something Aerith did.

Its only after meeting Vincent and having that seemingly random attack in the middle of his conversation with him that it happened: Zack's dyspnea had violently reacted with Cloud's own fit; at that exact moment. And in the morning following this fit, Zack's condition went right back to square freaking one. His traumatic pneumothorax went back to being a profound problem; with the man somewhat silently dreading every moment that such an episode would happen again. But now, this was no longer the case-

Or at least, so it appeared to him. There really was no way of knowing for sure until push came to shove. For all he knew, he may not be cured of all; if only temporarily relieved.

For right now though, Zack could feel Vincent's eyes upon him; glinting curiously in the ambient lighting of their shared hotel room. The elder man was just as curious as his female companion, but didn't betray the same outward signs. However, there was no mistaking that weirdly intense scrutiny; conjoined with Vincent's even weirder lack of blinking.

Zack felt his mouth slip open once, but then he clamped it back and surveyed the girl sitting just within a couple feet of him. Honestly, he didn't know what to say, nor where to even start. The one thing that's been on his mind for the last few hours after his departure from the beach was how he was going to explain to Cissnei that both Aerith and Tifa now knew about him; let alone the fact that his breathing had been largely rectified twice over now-

In fact, he never told her about the first time Aerith had healed him. He'd been too timid to bring it up; only going on to tell Cissnei about his run-in with Yuffie. Frankly, he wouldn't know how to address his current position without telling Cissnei about the prior incident anyways. Moreover, there just wasn't any way to properly understand what the difference between Aerith healing him then and now even was.

Why had it been so much more effective this time? And, if it had been so effective the first time around, how come Cloud's own fit reset his condition? Assuming that was the case. Would it happen again? Would Zack ever get over this abominable infirmity?

Zack continued flapping his trap, and then shrunk in on himself and hung his head. He just wanted to wrap himself up in his bedding and be left alone for the whole rest of the night; and to shower off his annoyingly persistent mako-stink and sweat accumulated from the throes of his day. He was already plenty self-conscious about the astringent and sharp scent; inwardly knowing that Aerith hadn't found anything about it good.

Her expression when she'd locked eyes with him had said enough: She may have immediately shrugged it off and smiled happily, even flirting back enough to leave some hope in his heart- but there was no denying the effects the scent of mako had on people. It was like a badge of your lack of normality; something that betrayed you either had a mako addiction, a condition from an accident with it in general, or you were SOLDIER. All of these things were bad signs within itself, and Zack already qualified for the latter two out of these three things.

As for Cissnei, he knew he couldn't lie to her; and for a huge slew of reasons beyond the obvious: He knew he wasn't any good at keeping his tone of voice modulated, despite his relatively well-honed poker face. Cissnei would know from sound alone that he was trying to alter some part of his story. She was also trained to scent a lie from a mile off; so there's that.

Whenever Zack omitted some parts (like the incident at the Costa Del Sol), he's a little more likely to fool her; but its never going to last for very long. So instead, he usually deferred to the safer approach of employing some truths that would distract from the original topic at hand- things he knew he couldn't lie about, even if he really tried. Like when he ran into Yuffie for instance; the incredible coincidence within itself had been enough for Cissnei. After that, she hadn't tried to probe him for anymore information; being kind enough to confide within Zack's story.

And this had left him feeling plenty guilty about it- especially since he's never actually had to block her out of whatever weird facet of his life happened nowadays. Somehow, Cissnei had become someone he could pretty much whole-heartedly trust; no matter what he said or did. She took care of him; and was doing so right now.

He shut his eyes and gritted his teeth. This time around, he told himself that he knew there was no clear way he could avoid this enormous elephant in the room. He was pretty much largely healed- with the novel exception of his J-cells keeping him from healing completely. The cells were far too resilient for that- and something Zack felt Aerith couldn't treat even if she did know about them. Its not like she can undo four years worth of genetic modification in just one sitting- plus the years he's actually been in SOLDIER- thanks to a certain mad scientist in particular. Those side-effects are the ones that'll stay with him for the rest of his life- that he was plenty sure of.

So, the former SOLDIER hung his head further and set his jaw; unable to find any decent way to begin. He glanced up at his female compatriot on occasion, feeling his winding gut get further churned and repulsed by the idea of actually lying to her. He knew he just couldn't do it- and its not like he wanted too either.

Especially after all the shit she puts herself through for you, said some cutting, sarcastic whisper furiously jabbing its way into his noggin. She deserves every bit of truth you can give her so she can actually help your stupid ass.

Zack huffed; finding his ability to breathe obscenely easy to perform- something that continuously shocked him over and over after having been struggling with it for so long. Its no wonder he fell asleep so quickly only a few minutes into the helicopter ride. Admittedly, he still wasn't entirely sure if his condition would flare up again if Cloud had another fit- But with Aerith and Tifa watching over him, Zack couldn't help feeling a little inwardly relieved that the events of today had happened the way it did. He shut his eyes, feeling his shoulders slump heavily as he came to the conclusion that indeed, he should say something to Cissnei- even by principle.

He at least owed her that.

So, with all the apparent resignation of a hung man willingly walking towards the gallows, he dead-panned in the most Tseng-like way ever, "...Aerith healed me- and now she apparently knows who I am. She and Tifa both."

There. He said it. Not that he was very happy about it. Although, he had to admit that it felt much better to do this than to withhold the information in general.

He'd shut his eyes when he said this, quite unable to muster the balls to meet her likely annoyed, angry, disappointed, disgruntled, or whatever other expression. For all of his brazen, steel-clad nerve, it seemed the one thing that will always make even the stalwart Zack Fair take pause would be the inevitable, spiritually and morally draining disappointment on a woman's pretty face- Especially when it came to his mom, Aerith and Cissnei. Or all of the above. So instead, Zack had settled for resting his heavy arms on his knees and slumping tiredly; still feeling the effects of his exhaustion fraying at his already tattered nerves.

For some wholesome minute, Cissnei was silent; the atmosphere very much holding a bated breath that felt unusually similar to Zack's own condition. Said man merely continued to hold his defeated position, eventually entwining his hands together and feeling the childish desire to twiddle his thumbs. He may not feel weighted down by his condition at this moment, but it still didn't mean he could breathe that easily.

As for his Turk companion, Zack caught the lengthy release of a long-held sigh; and then he felt the bed shift and creak. "You said Aerith... and Tifa. Not anyone else. Right?"

Zack nodded, opening his eyes if only to stare despondently at the floor. "Yeah," he confirmed. "-And I told Aerith not to say anything to anyone either. But Tifa though..." He lifted his head there, staring pensively at the wall opposite of him, "-Tifa was the one who actually figured it out. Not that I ever told either of them anything about myself at any point."

He finally turned towards Cissnei, a little curious of what her reaction to this portent would actually be. He still felt infinitely horrible, uneasy and guilty; as if he'd deliberately went out of his way to inform Aerith about his current position. But to be fair, he had to console himself with the fact that he didn't. If nothing else, the real reason why he decided to confess to this new development wasn't just because he felt Cissnei deserved the truth.

As for the smaller individual beside him, her attention was firmly arrested upon the space between them; her expression the very epitome of flummoxed and calculated. She was likely trying to divine where and how Tifa could've found the lie; the Turk frowning increasingly more as she considered their previous, limited interactions with AVALANCHE.

Eventually, she looked up at Zack and asked simply, "How-? I don't understand. We only ran into them two times tops! How could Tifa have known? You said yourself she doesn't even know you that well!"

Zack planted both palms on his knees and squared his shoulders, huffing in the process. "-Aerith said Tifa put the pieces together, but the biggest clue she got was something she received directly from- and get this-" He lifted a hand and raised a single index finger. "-From Tseng himself!"

Whatever her prior expressions, Cissnei was abruptly replacing them with something that Zack couldn't ever mistaken. Nothing but pure, unadulterated confusion that bled easily across her features; her eyes narrowed and disbelieving.

Zack went on to say, "-According to Aerith, Tseng delivered a message to her through Tifa; saying something about him making due on his word to deliver all of Aerith's letters to me. He never told Tifa anything about me directly, and was said to avoid all questions she could've posed." Zack slapped hard, iron-colored brows upon both of his matched robin-egg colored eyes, "But still, it makes me wonder when he coulda done that, and why. Yunno?"

Cissnei opened her mouth, but it was Vincent who spoke up this time, "Tseng doesn't come off as the kind of person who'd carelessly make the mistake of tipping off or hinting at his greater secrets for just any reason. Personally, I can't help thinking if he asked Miss Lockhart to deliver this message for some obscured, deliberately pre-made agenda." His brows dipped even further, "If he really wanted to relay a message so badly, then he wouldn't have had to involve a third party; no matter the circumstance."

At this, the female Turk darted her steely amber orbs at the elder man, "-Or maybe we're just over-thinking it. He tried so hard to keep Zack concealed from everything and everyone, but to do this-" She focused on the ex-SOLDIER next, "-We all know that it would implicate the Turks, and inevitably allow AVALANCHE to know Zack is alive- whether indirectly or not. He'd NEVER do this! Not on purpose..."

Zack held up both hands and slapped them on his thighs, "Hey, I'm just as confused as you are! Its not like I had the time to ask Aerith about it-"

Cissnei's face immediately turned waspish, although her tone remained stiffly modulated. She jabbed a furious finger at him, "-And you should've known better to use the shape-shift materia to get her off your trail! It would've thrown Tifa in for a loop as an added bonus! That's partially the reason why Tseng gave it to you in the first place!"

The taller individual threw up his hands, although the gesture was more or less dismissive and not really agitated. He shut his eyes again in tired resignation, "Yeah yeah, I know, I know... You're right. I did a dumb." He planted his hands back on his knees, "But for what's it worth, I don't think I coulda managed the transformation anyways; nor make it stay convincingly solid long enough with me being so damn worn out. Other than that, I found out the hard way today that Aerith isn't gonna be fooled by cloak anymore; and even if she was, it wouldn't be for very long." Zack clenched his jaw, "So if that spell doesn't work, why would a flimsy, half-assed shape-shift spell be any different?"

Cissnei folded her arms, her nose wrinkling more. She looked ready to lecture him, but thankfully didn't press the issue; seeing as she knew he wasn't entirely wrong. For good measure, she even spared Vincent a cursory glance; only for the elder man to mutely nod back to her as if to confirm Zack's words. Upon this silent exchange, she returned her attention to the ex-SOLDIER.

"So I've been thinking," Zack went on, a little encouraged by her continued silence. "Seeing as they know about me, maybe we can take advantage of it? We can ask Aerith how Tifa came to this conclusion in the first place- And see how Tifa's encounter with Tseng went. Yunno?"

Cissnei suddenly sighed like she was both tired and aggravated herself; but then she moved a weary hand to her chin in a contemplative motion. She hummed at something next, her gaze reflective. She glanced back up at him after a ponderous minute.

"...While I'd usually discourage the idea of outright going to tell Aerith anything about what we're doing, let alone going to see her for any reason where Shinra can potentially see us-" She winced at this. "-Even I can't see myself not asking her about this. On the side-" She folded her arms as Zack had, "Aerith has known Tseng for about as long as I have; if not longer. She may know why he's done this, or she could help us figure out why he'd do it at all. Maybe..."

"Yeah! That's what I was thinking," Zack nodded.

Cissnei stood up from the bed and meandered around in front of him, steps muffled as she glided bare-footed across the stone-blue carpet. Her expression darkened marginally, "-I can't help wondering... Aerith is someone who wouldn't willingly blurt out secrets, and its not like Shinra would want to torture this exact information out of her unless they're deliberately and specifically looking for anything on you in particular. Now that I'm thinking about it, her knowing about you isn't such a huge problem..." She turned towards her tired compatriot, "So I think its fair to say that we can trust Aerith with some of the information, for now. Although, I still don't know enough about Tifa to be as sure. Didn't you say you knew her for only about a week-?"

Zack crossed one leg over the other, slouching into a propped-up hand as his mind fell backward towards five years prior. "...Tifa was, to put it simply, kinda weird," he shrugged. "-And when I say 'weird', I mean she's like, really, really secretive. She didn't bother trying to initiate conversation beyond her job as a tour guide, but that coulda been because me and Sephiroth were Shinra personnel."

He wryly twisted the corner of his lips, "If I had to be honest though, I don't think she's the 'talkative' type anyways. If she were, she woulda told Cloud I was involved in the Nibelheim event way back when-" His stare hardened, "-And yet she didn't, choosing to keep her silence instead. Now that I think about it, I bet we can safely say she'll continue to keep her mouth shut. Besides, Aerith promised that she'd make sure my name doesn't crop up at any point. So at the very least, I'm sure Tifa won't say anything; if on Aerith's account."

Cissnei said nothing to this, her brows neatly knitting together. A simple "huh" escaped her, and that was that.

"Like I said," Zack offered with another casual bob in his bare shoulders, suddenly remembering that he needed to put on a shirt at some point. The ceiling fan was making him feel a little chilly admittedly. "-The only thing we can do is ask 'em about what they know when we see 'em. I really don't see the harm in that..."

"Maybe," Cissnei returned noncommittally.

"We'd be all the worse off if we didn't," Vincent suddenly imputed; drawing the attention of both of his companions. "We need to be sure that this breach in information isn't coming from a source that would sincerely compromise our position; and confirm the number of people within the knowing in order to assure our safety. Its bad enough that this Tifa had supposedly come to this conclusion from mere conjecture-"

The female Turk shot him a understanding look, nodding all the while. "Yeah. You're absolutely right," she said. "As usual."

Vincent nodded back at her.

She once again turned to Zack, "Okay then... I guess we'll be going after them tomorrow and asking them everything they know about the limit of their knowledge about you, and confirming its origin. If it really did just come from Tseng, then its safe to say that your identity is still relatively secured. If they do however say otherwise..." She winced at this, looking for all intents and purposes like someone who'd just learned that their entire family had been killed in some kind of freak accident. "-Then its safe to say that Rufus will definitely have ALL our skins for this," She apprehensively hugged herself, giving Zack a free indicator of her unease.

Zack nodded grimly, with Vincent's already sullen aura shifting a few shades darker nearby.

Just then, a polite ping expunged the weighty atmosphere of its heady tenebrousity; drawing Cissnei's attention to her brightening phone in her breast pocket. The girl immediately zeroed in on it, swiftly drawing it out just in case it was an update from Cait Sith or some sort of Intel from Tseng himself. Cissnei scrutinized the contents of her phone, blinked a few dazed times, and then texted a response back.

Zack straightened his posture, suddenly looking far more attentive than he'd been for the better part of the last few hours. "Well, is it from him?" he inquired.

Cissnei lowered it and passed Zack a stare he couldn't quite interpret, "Be expecting a call on your cell. Its supposed to be from the boss man himself. Answer it when it rings."

"Tseng, huh?" Zack clarified.

However, much to Zack's immediate and befuddled amazement, Cissnei only shook her head- the motion deliberately drawn out. In fact, her expression even changed to something far more statuesque; more so than any other time he's ever seen it on her.

Just as she said, Zack's older cell went off not more than a few seconds there-after. The man clenched his jaw and passed Cissnei a furtive glance or two before removing the charger from the device and raising it to eye-level. As if to continue perplexing him, the number on it wasn't anything he recognized. There was no name either. Zack let it ring for another second just to confirm whether or not he should pick it up at all; but upon seeing the fixed steel on Cissnei's face, he reluctantly obliged. He raised the phone to his ear, feeling his face blank out as a freezing, muted dread spiked his nerves.

"Eh, hello-?" Zack tried first.

"-Garm, right?"

The ex-SOLDIER cringed; the stern tone greeting his ear every bit as hard as a shovel. This brass baritone wasn't too deep, but it held an experienced, clipped command to its edge that even a SOLDIER superior like Angeal had. In fact, Zack thought it sounded rather eerily similar to his teacher's; and to say it vaguely disturbed him and had firmly taken him off his guard couldn't be closer to the truth.

Zack hesitated, and then, "Y-yes?"

There was a beat, "...I need a verbal code verification of your identity- to be sure of whom I'm speaking with really is Garm Sturges. Do you consent to this?"

Zack actually blinked rather stupidly, and then soundlessly mouthed the request to Cissnei. She read his lips and immediately understood, thankfully reciprocating in a hushed undertone.

So Zack echoed her words with, "Err... Code: Sept-Zero-Hypo-Subject-B-Skol."

"Confirmed," said he. "Its good to actually speak with you, Glaive. My name is Septimus, and I believe this is our first time we've actually directly communicated since the project began. Now, I must ask; are you alone, or is Shuriken with you?"

Zack had once again been thrown in for a loop when he realized that the man speaking to him knew Cissnei's secret Turk name as well as his own. He darted more glances between she and his device, and then put it back to his ear. "Uh, Shuriken is present," he replied uncertainly.

"Is Tri-Barrel there as well?"

"Y-yeah, but... Holy shit," Zack mumbled without intending on it. "How do you know Vince too-?"

Vincent was seen narrowing his eyes at this, dipping his head further into his high-collar.

"Tseng had informed me," said the man on the phone, his tone almost humored. "If you don't mind my asking though, Glaive, but are you alone with them and is your environment secured?"

"As secure as a hotel room can get."

"-Hm. I suppose it'll suffice. Knowing Cissnei, she's likely to have already checked for any suspicious equipment."

"She did, yeah," Zack confirmed. He then added with fleeting humor, "That and bed-bugs."

"Ah, alright then. Put me on speaker, but be sure the volume isn't at its highest setting. I have something to say to you all."

Zack was now thoroughly over-cooked in the brains department; but he obliged the request nonetheless. He kept his phone's speaker volume around medium, and then held it up to Cissnei and Vincent.

"You there, Cissnei?"

"Yes sir," She promptly replied. Her face was fluctuating between terse and something else- an emotion that Zack wasn't really sure he was quite identifying correctly.

"Excellent. And I presume Vincent can hear me as well?"

Zack looked at the elder man; and couldn't help feeling his guts wind into an ever tighter wad as he belatedly noted the cautiously shocked expression etching the other's usually placid persona. Vincent looked honest to God confused and out-right surprised at the address. He paused for an uncertain minute as he turned over the words spoken to him. And then he said, "I am-?"

"Alright. Now that I have all of your attentions," said he. "I have some exciting news for each of you. To start us off, I'd like to ask you three to make a detour to my place, when you can. Not that you're in any rush-" Zack heard something like a chair squeaking in the background, "-Just be sure its within the week. As it were, I've taken the liberty of uploading the coordinates to this hand-held device in particular. Once you have it logged, make sure all traces of its data is erased and dispose of this phone: Make sure nothing of its existence can be traced or found. I'll have a new cellular device waiting for Garm for when you get here."

Zack flashed a shocked expression to his companions.

"Next, be sure to change rides too. Shotgun will be waiting to meet you half way," he continued to elaborate. "She'll be able to bring you all back to your assigned vehicle once your excursion is finished. Call her number three hours in advance so she can meet you."

"Shotgun-?" Zack mouthed to Cissnei.

"That's Freyra," the Turk girl informed him quickly.

"Oh."

After this, the copper-headed girl stepped forward and stopped just shy of Zack, speaking more forwardly to his phone. "-If you don't mind my asking," Cissnei decided to break in. "Can I ask what the reason for this is? I mean, what about AVALANCHE's shadow guard-? They've been taking more pro-active risks and-"

"I'm already aware of Palmer's death," he politely interjected. "-And I've already picked out some fresh agents for insertion. They'll be temporarily replacing you after you call in Freyra. That's what the three hours is for; to let them move to AVALANCHE's location."

"Ah. Right," Cissnei nodded.

"Now then, as I'm sure you all want to know," he continued rather mildly. "The primary reason for your visit is for me to give you another new assignment personally- as well as update you of Sephiroth's whereabouts therein. All this information is a little too sensitive to be spoken through a device that can be hacked at any given second. And I didn't want to use Cissnei's phone either- seeing as Turk devices get checked routinely for any suspicious activity."

And then he added on, as if to worsen Zack's renewed sense of paranoia, "Its bad enough Rufus has asked Tseng to acquire Garm's number. We don't need the president to be tracking Zack by any means- let alone with a standard, Shinra-issued device."

Zack couldn't help that tiny somersault in his gut at this; not at all able to purge the gnawing fear roiling away within his tightening belly. Its no wonder Tseng gave him an older, inexpensive, not-so-smart phone earlier on- as it would be a temporary tool.

"And-" Septimus went on with what could be interpreted as a smug inflection. "I wanted to tell you that we managed to actually scratch up some information on Hojo's projects- as well as succeed in capturing the man himself. He's sitting right here in our holding cell- with Shotgun guarding him as we speak."

All three individuals jumped at this, Vincent suddenly dropping his previously folded arms and stepping towards Zack's direction. Zack jolted in place while Cissnei excitedly gesticulated.

"I knew it!" she eagerly imputed. "I knew Freyra could do it!"

"But of course," Said Septimus, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. "Did you expect anything less?"

Cissnei folded her arms, "Personally, its not that I didn't think she can't do it, but more like she shouldn't... Tseng was rather specific about the reasons why capturing Hojo so soon could pose a problem."

"Indeed. However, Hojo has no lab specimens to hide behind here, and no Shinra personnel to defend him from us. He'll no doubt dodge queries for a while, but it goes without saying that we'll eventually figure out what his obsession with Sephiroth and Jenova cells are for-" There was a pause, the man's following tone clearly contemptuous, "-And why he decided that its a smart idea to give his subjects so much of the former's DNA."

Zack snorted at this, with Vincent doing the same nearby. However, the elder man was the one to speak up next. "If I may," he inquired in a lower, more gravelly tone than before. It betrayed some semblance of his impatience; as far as Zack knew. "-We all know Hojo isn't going to let himself fall victim to any direct methods of interrogation. We also know him well enough to understand that if he truly does feel the need to bury his secrets with him, he'll happily do so."

"True," said the project leader. "But while Hojo is admittedly difficult, it isn't impossible to get what we need from him. He's usually more liable to speak of his failures than projects he deems a working success- with Cloud and Zack falling within the former category." Zack could almost see the man shrugging at this. "-Strangely enough, he's never really readily concealed information on what he considers his 'broken toys' anyways- In fact, he even seems to relish talking about them in exquisite detail as if it'll help him understand why they failed when they did- or its to psych out his current subjects."

"Ah, like the comic-book bad guy monologing about his diabolical plans?" Zack smirked ironically at that.

"Well, yes and no. But mostly no." He paused here, and then, "As I've said: its more to help Hojo understand why his failures happen at all. He's an auditory learner; and takes to muttering whenever he's thinking too hard. Having said that, I decided we could advantage of this quirk and mention Cloud to him as a way to bait some of the information out of him- He might want to talk about him for this very reason." He paused, took a breath, and then said, "-As well as offer Hojo a small trade in information, should that fail."

Zack felt his blood pressure sky-rocket then, his grip on his phone tightening to a degree where he knew he would inevitably break and warp his device. He had to mentally check himself in order to stop himself from following through on the violent impulse to rend something with his bare hands. Cissnei meanwhile had frowned at the sight of his uncharacteristically brimming fury, her expression wary but understanding.

"B-But- But why?" Zack bluntly inquired, his tone brittle; cutting. "I thought the whole plan was to get rid of him after getting what we need-? Not collaborate with him!"

"It still stands to be that way," Septimus intoned. "-He's just not aware of it. I believe he's under the impression that he'll be handed off to Rufus to be thrown into a jail cell in Junon after we get what we need. Getting information about what he did to you and Cloud won't be the hard part." He paused here, as if for dramatic effect. And then, "-But it'll be the why we won't understand. That's the most important part- as we believe its connected to Sephiroth's more recent behaviors."

Zack shot glances between his companions, and they in-turn. "What," he clipped. "-Is this motivation of his that important?"

"Believe it or not, yes," said he. "It'll tell us something about the threat level of these J-cells themselves; more so than what we already know. He's already spent more than decades of his life trying to unravel their mysteries; and admittedly, we'd be remiss to ignore the reasoning for it. And while Hojo's methods have always been... caustic-" He huffed almost exasperatedly there, "-You can't say he isn't frustratingly effective with the results he reaps."

Vincent was heard uttering a thoughtful "Huh" at this, making Zack and Cissnei jointly look up at him with mild amounts of confusion. He must have come down to some kind of elusive thought, but Zack didn't bother asking at the moment. In truth, the ex-SOLDIER had expected to feel Vincent's brimming fury permeate the room like fermented cat-piss; as its certainly how Zack himself felt at the second.

Septimus went on, "Anyways, I think its safe to say that if we liberally share what we know about Sephiroth's whereabouts, Hojo will be more receptive to communication- As it seems Hojo has been following any leads on Sephiroth himself, and he's quite interested in knowing what we have to share in edge-wise. His theories will actually help us understand the importance and connection between Sephiroth and Jenova, and what and where he's going and doing."

"Okay but, I still don't understand," Zack grumbled. "-What else is there to know about Sephiroth when we already know about the cells being injected his body before birth? What other connection could there be?"

"Now that truly is the million gil question," Septimus said. "-And its something only Hojo may be able to answer- as no one seems to know Sephiroth better than the 'good' doctor himself." There was yet another pause here, as if the man was trying to get his thinking cap on. And then, "Did Tseng ever mention Sephiroth's appearance at the Shinra building in Midgar?"

"He did in passing, yeah," Zack confirmed, wondering what the man was trying to lead him into. For all Zack knew, Septimus thought along the same, abstract way Tseng does.

"Did he ever mention how Sephiroth took the entire Jenova specimen with him that same night?"

Now this was the part that certainly confused Zack. Right then his brain screeched to a grinding halt. "No," he trailed off. He folded his arms, holding the phone closer to his mouth, "I don't think he did-? Either that, or... I just forgot about it."

"Hm. Well, if he did forget to tell you, it wasn't deliberate. Its more a small over-sight on his part," Septimus seemed to shrug off; not that Zack could tell over the phone. "Its not really meant to be a secret he'd want to keep from you. But yes, Sephiroth himself now seems to have a vested interest in Jenova beyond his whole preconception of this thing being his 'mother'. Its odd enough he left that arm of the specimen on the ship you and Cissnei were on. I can't help wondering if he's weaponizing it in some way?"

Zack blinked furiously and shot Cissnei a weird look; only to see that she too was puzzled by this.

"Anyways," continued the enigmatic man. "We want to understand Sephiroth's motives using Hojo's Intel as a means of tracking him. While we've been successful at sighting Sephiroth at some places, its never for very long- and certainly not long enough to help us understand what he's doing or where he's going." Zack heard him take a breath, "So, getting Hojo to tell us about not just the project you were involved in, but to better understand Sephiroth himself is optimal. For that matter, keeping Hojo alive for the time-being is absolutely essential, as loathe as I am to say this to you and Vincent of all people."

"But it still doesn't mean he'll opt to willingly tell you this," Vincent stated suspiciously. "-Or if what he says could even be the truth. He'll definitely try to withhold all the information to himself in a bid to keep himself alive, or out of Rufus' hands."

"We've already considered this as the most likely possibility," said he. "-But it cannot be helped. His knowledge is still more important than what we'll ever know. We do have a lie detector, among some other well-used and proven methods to help us solidify whatever we can get; but we also know we can only get so much information from him." Septimus then added on, "-Not that we'll take what he says at face value. We're wary of the fact that he'll try to throw some misinformation at us, on the side."

Vincent harrumphed skeptically, but he didn't comment further.

"-Now, having said this, I do mean it when I say take your time in coming here. We're going to need a little time to get what we need from Hojo before your arrival. And whenever you do come," he continued. "I'll have Garm here dispose of the 'evidence'. He and Vincent can jointly do this if they so desire."

That's when Zack felt it; that uncharacteristically cruel streak racing through him in stampeding excitement. He knew Vincent can feel it too; the desire to exact upon Hojo what he's wrought to them. Suddenly in a slightly more chipper mood, Zack reclined on his bed and propped his pillow high enough so he could lean against it; throwing one arm behind his head while the other continued to hold the phone for his companions.

"So you're saying," he began slowly, watching Vincent's gaze shift murkily beneath the over-hanging shadow of his bandanna. "-That me and Vince here will be free to get rid of Hojo our own way once you're done with him?"

"If you want to," said the enigmatic man.

"Welp, I got no problems with that. You, Vince?"

"None," came the terse, growling agreement.

"Alright then," Septimus went on, deciding not to comment on that. "Figured I'd at least let you know. Head on over to the rendezvous point within the next few days when you're ready. I won't be keeping you lot here for too long."

"Thank you sir," Cissnei said. "We truly appreciate it."

"Its not me you should be thanking, but sure," he returned with what Zack could presume was a verbally dismissive wave. "I'll be seeing you three later. Good night."

And without letting Zack or Cissnei get the second to spare the enigmatic man a word in edgewise, the line went silent. Zack's phone hummed the dead dial tone for a few long seconds before Zack managed to remember to do something with himself and locked his device. He turned towards his female companion, shaking his head disbelievingly.

"...Wow. That guy couldn't be any stiffer than a rigid prick, even if he wanted to," He snickered, grinning half-heartedly all the while.

Cissnei's lips twisted wryly, "That's Sir for you. He's like that one stern uncle or grandpa everybody is scared of but they know he's a decent guy underneath. Although, he can be super serious and super scary."

"Wha- even to you-?" Zack said. "-Of all people?"

"Yeah, even me," she shrugged. "-As incredibly unlikely as that seems."

Zack chuckled good-naturedly. "Yeah, well... He kinda low-key reminded me of Angeal," he admitted. "He even kind of talked the same way too. I thought he seemed a little stiff."

The smaller individual had her turn to giggle fondly at this, her eyes a benign light that Zack found rather strange. It beheld a charming glow that he wasn't sure he was hallucinating- but it was gone as soon as he caught it.

Perhaps, he reflected. She feels the same about this Sir as I do about Angeal.

"Well," Cissnei eventually huffed. "-I guess its fair to say we'll need an early start tomorrow if we hope to catch AVALANCHE before they scoot off to Minerva-knows-where... and we'll need to get that ride to Sir's hideout as soon as we can. I know he said we can take our time while he gathers Intel on you and Cloud, but I want to at least get your phone replaced sooner rather than later- As you'll need it."

Zack nodded, feeling somewhat thrilled by the idea of finally getting the chance to meet this man. He turned to Vincent next; suddenly remembering the advent confusion he saw when Septimus had first called them. "Yo Vince," he jerked his head. "Did you recognize the voice or something?"

"...Hm? Why do you ask?" he inquired.

Zack bumped his shoulders, "You just kinda had that look like you just saw a ghost or somethin'. Either that or I was misinterpreting it."

The elder man shook his head and leaned coolly against the wall, arms crossing over his willowy chest. He did that fluttering motion with his eye-lids; something that always came off as an attempt to blink but he forgot how to do so about mid-way. "Admittedly," he said, shaking his head all the while. "I thought he did sound rather familiar, but I could be wrong..."

Zack blinked at this, wondering who in the leaping hell Vincent could've known in the past that could still be around today- thirty whole years later. The odds seemed improbable; especially since a person's voice can change dramatically in that span of time. And having heard it over the phone nonetheless, it just seemed borderline ridiculous. Vincent had also never mentioned anyone beyond Lucrecia, Hojo, his father, or the personnel in the Nibelheim Research cell- so this mystery only served to excite Zack.

"Did he sound like an old buddy or something?" the ex-SOLDIER tried instead.

"...He did. Yes."

"Any idea who?" Cissnei asked this time, suddenly finding his reaction just as baffling.

Vincent harrumphed, but then shook his head, "All I can say is that he somewhat sounded like an old partner I had during my earlier assignments before my deployment to Nibelheim. That's all."

"An old Turk buddy, huh-?" Zack concluded.

Vincent harrumphed at him, "Perhaps, but its not like it matters. For all I know, its just a coincidence, and my memory could be misleading me."

"Eh, maybe," Zack shrugged, deciding to let the subject go for now.

Cissnei had her turn to shrug here, "Well, anyways, its getting late and we know AVALANCHE will have an early start tomorrow." Her amber eyes narrowed, "I want to understand where Tifa got this information first before we try heading to Sir's location- and I know he's going to need to know about how many other people know about Zack. If someone other than Aerith and Tifa are within this circle now, it could mean trouble." She folded her arms, "-But Sir will be able to help us prepare for it accordingly."

"Gotcha," Zack nodded. "I'll write down the coordinates and shit."

"Do that," Cissnei said, taking out a little note-pad from her tux and handing it to him. "-And delete the call log too. Send Hendel a text telling him your number may change."

The ex-SOLDIER nodded, and then went to to do just that.

Cissnei then bent over and rummaged through her bags, finding her much-preferred casual night-gown emblazoned with the words "Sleep, Coffee, Sparkle, and Repeat". She threw it over her arm and turned towards the bathroom; but then she stopped to say over her shoulder, "...Get some sleep, Zack. Minerva knows you need it more than ever."

"Not until I get a shower," he bemoaned. "I feel grody enough as it is!"

Cissnei smirked, "Alright. Shower first, then bed. We got enough to do tomorrow."

"Alrighty!"

Cissnei went in to change; and was promptly out within a minute. She had a toothbrush in hand, but her eyes were on Vincent. "You going to bed too? Or are you just going to wander around the town all night, like usual?"

Vincent inclined his head at the window, a little scoff his following reply.

Cissnei shrugged at that, "...Suit yourself. That last bed is all yours if you change your mind."

She ducked back into the bathroom, all the while Zack went to find his own bed-wear. Vincent was seen slipping out the window like a thief in the night; shutting it closed and cloaking as he went. Zack watched him seamlessly melt into the shadows, not at all understanding the reasoning for it.

"Man he's weird," he off-handedly commented.

"So are you," Cissnei threw at him after stopping to spit out a mouthful of tooth-paste. She then said around the foamy remains, "You're supposed to be sicker than a damn dog and you still have the strength to stop a tow-truck, if you so wanted."

"Eh, I'm a freaking tanky, macho, sexy, lean, mean mofo. What can you do?" Zack blithely returned with a smug inflection. He pulled out his sweat pants and his navy tee-shirt, throwing it over his bed and sitting to wait until Cissnei was done. He felt his frown return suddenly, "-Although, Vincent's personality is still a little weird to me. Its a shame he doesn't try to stick around to talk to us some more."

Zack's eyes stayed on the window, all the while waiting until Cissnei got done with her teeth before returning his attention to her. He watched as she clambered onto her respective bed, drawing up her legs and crossing them. Her hands fell into her lap, her honeyed mocha pools gently a lit by their meager lamp.

"I don't really blame him," She amicably reciprocated. "Any social contact he's ever had way back when usually back-fired in some kind of horrible way; his love-life aside. Think about it: His father died in a accidental lab experiment... and he never felt inclined to make any friends outside his job as a Turk." Her expression took on a more somber air, "-And I can't say I don't understand the latter feeling. For a while, I felt like making friends on the job was just another way to get hurt. A lot of the time, a Turk's job is going to clash against those who work outside of their specific department, or outside of Shinra in general. Relationships are a double-edged sword for us."

The dim lighting of their one, solitary bed-side lamp created the abstract illusion of her eyes being set more deeply into their sockets. Her lips thinned considerably, "...A lot of the time, friendships end quite violently for the Turks. You saw what happened after you escaped from Nibelheim-" Her head hung more, "...I really thought I had to fight you... I'm just glad it really didn't have to come to that."

Zack felt something tight within his guts turn cold and leaden; a sickly knot that refused to yield. His face blanked out, jaw clenching as he remembered that spine-freezing moment when he first reunited with Cissnei. He even brandished the Buster sword at her- something he never imagined himself doing underneath any given circumstances. His eyes fell to the floor, tersely clenching his jaw as the memory forcibly reminded him of a time where he would've willingly hurt one friend just to protect another- A shameful notion that still bothered him to this day, almost an entire year later.

Even though Cissnei may have raised her weapon first, she was also the first to let me go, he recalled. She even lied to Tseng about finding me for that first little while; having likely believed Tseng would've followed through on his orders to have me and Cloud hauled in.

...But now, I can't help wondering...

"Friends are a luxury to us," Cissnei continued to inform him, oblivious to his inner doubts about the Turk Director. "-And they're not something we're allowed to keep. Tseng has had to leave quite a few companions out to dry as it is; and its something he's definitely not proud off." She sighed, "His personality within itself reflects that."

"...Then why save me?" Zack couldn't help asking, his mellowed timbre lowered.

Cissnei's expression lightened marginally, although her shrug did nothing but minutely unsettle Zack. "...Who knows? I guess he thinks you're just special or something. Minerva knows you're a good influence on him," she coyly replied, although there was no mirth to her smirk. Her expression suddenly darkened next, all without warning. She had her turn to focus her gaze to the space between them.

"...If you hadn't survived your battle in the wastes," she said in the smallest voice ever. "-Tseng probably would've went on as always; being as cold-blooded and 'logical' as he needed to be- Its the only way he knows." She glanced off to the side, "-He'd probably would've continued to delude himself with the idea that following the president's dream of finding the Promised land is a still a proper way forward. He only ever saw sense in it being a feverish pipe-dream because of something you said to him at some point- whatever and whenever that was."

"I don't remember ever saying anything special," Zack scratched his head, cocking it in the process. "All I said was that its an unrealistic kiddy fairy tale that shouldn't drive the back-bone of a business. And that's literally JUST before he sent me on this whole mission."

The Turk merely shrugged at that, equally at a loss. "I dunno. You sure it wasn't something you could've said to him before your Nibelheim deployment? Five or so years back?" She tried.

"Not that I recall," Zack reciprocated.

She hummed, her eyes slightly narrowed as she reflected on Tseng's current behavior. "...Well, I suppose there's still one thing we can safely say," She amicably added on after an indecisive minute.

The other tilted his head again, hands resting in his lap.

"Sometimes," she began. "-Being brave enough to verbally put voice to the very thing we all refuse to acknowledge is more than enough. In your head, finding a place even the Ancients themselves sought for seems to be a good idea- as its something even Lucrecia and the great Dr. Gast deemed a worthy pursuit." Her tone turned bitter briefly, "-Sephiroth was conceived under that very 'romantic' notion; and ironically enough even consequently thought himself that Gast's pursuits were note-worthy later on in his life. So many people believed in this beautiful idea of finding the Promised Land."

She frowned at that, and then ticked off, "-So, that makes the late president, the current one, Tseng, Gast, Lucrecia, Sephiroth, and many others with usually like minds that I can't name off the top of my head that believe it. Heck, even Vincent somewhat believed in it at some fleeting point. Remember?"

"Yeah, but he hadn't been entirely sold about the idea either," Zack reminded her.

She gestured at this, "Well, maybe that's true and all, but it still served as a sufficient enough reason to keep Vincent from stopping Lucrecia from initiating the project. And by then, the damage had already been irrevocably done." She cocked her head at him, her expression an affectionate gentleness that Zack saw but rarely. "But you though-" she went on to say. "You're probably the first and only person that, for all his talk of dreams, has actually contradicted the idea of finding the Promised Land- even though you were dating an actual Ancient for crying out loud! I still find that ironically humorous."

She laughed there, the sound small but genuine.

"...Yunno," she went on to say. "-You're a person whose child-like dream is to become a hero- a dream that's usually dismissed as an unrealistic, kiddy fantasy within itself. You're someone whose been described to possess a certain naivete that many of your superiors figured a weakness. But even then, you're still grounded enough to see that finding the Promised Land isn't a realistic notion."

Cissnei shook her head, smiling at Zack all the while. Its almost as if she was mutely thanking him somehow; although Zack didn't know where he got that idea. To say the least, the man still couldn't help feeling a little bashful at this.

She went on, "-Tseng probably saw some sense in your words then; whenever that was. It probably helped change the way he thinks, for all we know... or maybe its something else we just don't see." She inclined her head at him, "Maybe its your honest, loyal demeanor he's drawn too. We know you won't leave a friend hanging; even if they're a dead weight to you, or if they're someone whose hurt you in some way. You've literally proven your earnest personality time and time again- and I think its that trait in particular is something Tseng desperately wanted to latch onto: Especially after all the times he's had to forsake a friendship."

Cissnei suddenly hugged herself; a gesture Zack only saw a selective few times before. "His job makes it hard for him to keep anyone important or significant in his life, and having someone who would be inevitably hurt by him, but would understand why he does it and would still remain his friend anyway, is something worth-while to him. Because at the end of the day, even if we lose that beautiful dream of finding the Promised Land, the one thing we can tangibly reach for is that one-in-a-million friend. Right?"

Zack snorted, finding all this colored talk suddenly a little silly. He didn't know where it was coming from, nor how they even got onto the subject. All he knew was that it felt like Cissnei was giving him more credit than he deserved. But he nonetheless reciprocated in a genteel timbre, "Well, that's the only thing that matters then, right? I know its a bit cheesy, but if you can't reach your dreams, you can at least reach for your friends. They're something you can actually touch. Yunno?"

"Yeah," she nodded. "That sounds about right."

Zack swiped a confident hand under his nose, smiling all the while.

Cissnei meanwhile went on. "-You know, having said all that, it still makes me wonder," she pensively offered. "-Maybe Tseng only needed someone as strong as you and Cloud to help him do his job properly-? Although, I don't think its that..." She cringed, "Not that I actually see him using you of all people as some kind of tool."

Zack eyed her, choosing to remain silent at this.

"-While he isn't always above the idea of using people," she reluctantly admitted. "He isn't going to resort to it unless its an absolute last resort. I trust in Tseng, even though his motives confuses the rest of us, at the best of times." Her expression lightened, "The decisions he makes would challenge the constitution of any lesser man and wear them down to the nub. Too many times in our history, Turks died in their uniforms after asking too many questions or directly disobeying immoral orders-"

Cissnei's little smile from before was now long gone now, "-And Vincent is an outstanding example of both of those exact cases. So, even if we do say 'no' to a particularly horrifying mission, some of us are burdened with the weight of knowing that even this refusal- positive or negative- is ruining someone else's life in some way, shape or form. Another innocent person would be sent out in our stead to carry out what's essentially our jobs. Our singular decisions, affecting our perception of the mission... A taboo that would inevitably affect our judgement at the most critical moment."

She held out her hands, cupping them together as if she can physically hold out her words, "-Tseng has the resolve to make the decisions we can't; and that's why he made it to Director. Even Rufus sees it- Tseng's capable of being ruthlessly efficient; but he isn't always like this because knowing you just may be a balm for him." Her expression became ponderous, "Recently, Tseng only does just enough to keep the Turks out of direct scrutiny; to protect us from not only Shinra, but our own feelings. Sometimes, its seems much easier to simply follow orders rather than think to do it for ourselves."

Zack shook his head, his expression suddenly militant. His tone bordered scornful, but he kept it out of his voice well enough, "So, you'd rather sacrifice your free will so don't have to feel guilty about the weight of your actions? That actually sounds almost completely irresponsible to me."

Cissnei straightened her posture and matched his gaze with one of her own, "-While I can't speak for the others, I know I'm not sacrificing anything about myself- not my free will, not my decisions, nothing of the sort. I've always been willing to break the occasional rule, as you should already know."

The man ducked his head submissively, but his jaw remained clenched.

Her shoulders slumped next, her next sentence breathed as if it were some secret, slipped thought, "...Although, I still can't deny that Tseng taking the hot-seat whenever it comes to the big questions and decisions is a somewhat reassuring thought. If we all had to make our own decisions, we'd be arguing so much, we'd never get anything done. Worse yet, some of us don't always have the same mental fortitude to endure the repercussions of our actions."

Like Sector Seven, Zack thought. I wonder which one of 'em had to push the button for that?

The ex-SOLDIER wanted to comment at that, but decided to keep his mouth shut as he absorbed this. He did eventually duck his head still further, unable to keep this one nagging question from escaping him, "...I still don't get why he'd want to bother with me though, even after all that. Its not like we ever really hung out socially before..."

"Maybe not," Cissnei shrugged. "But even Tseng sees how genuine you are. Its a rare trait to have- and one he apparently values more-so than even we thought. He saw fit to risk our lives, as well as his own to save you when the opportunity arose; something he's never done for anyone else- let alone a laboratory sample deemed dangerous." She shook her head at these words, looking for all intents and purposes like she wanted to take them back. "Still, you can't deny that some proof of his desire to remain in your good graces may exist in some way; contrary to what you think. For all we know, this time around his friendship with you is something he values far more than being a proper Turk; despite it not stopping him before."

Zack worked his jaw and looked away, somewhat unable to completely digest these words.

"Anyways, I digress. I think the point was-" Cissnei leaned back and looked at the ceiling, her face thoughtful. "-Was that Vincent doesn't want to be too close to us out of habit. And maybe what Tseng does is a mixed bag... but I still definitely believe he's only looking out for us. We don't have to understand their reasoning in order to believe their hearts are in the right place- no matter how small and shrunken said heart is. Yunno?"

Zack eventually bobbed his head, not at all disagreeing with the girl's words at least- even though he was having a hard time attaching these words to Tseng in particular. "Still kinda sounds a little biased or colored though..." he trailed off, scratching his head dubiously.

"Hm, maybe," she hummed. "But its all I believe, and all that ever mattered to me. The only way we can know for sure is to ask Tseng himself why he decided to save you. That's just my take on it."

The larger individual shuffled, suddenly belatedly realizing that Cissnei had been whole-heartedly opening up to him just now; and he almost entirely dismissed it because it sounded a little 'colored'. So, he gently smiled at this, but he couldn't help wondering about the Turk Director with some amount of continued skepticism. After a minute, his fragile smile withered in marginal degrees as the words came to him.

So he said, "...The funny thing is, I've even asked Tseng those exact questions quite a few times now- both before he sent us to Nibelheim and after. He never really directly told me why he saved me, other than the whole 'cuz we're friends' answer."

Cissnei wrinkled her nose again, "...And you still don't believe it?"

"I dunno what to believe," Zack huffed. His voice became somewhat bitter as he went on, "-Cuz I know Tseng's kept information from me more than just a handful of times. Like the part when he said the Turks were the reason why Sector Seven was dropped."

"I thought you already knew that?" Cissnei wondered aloud, as if it was the most obvious thing.

When Zack didn't reply to this, she sighed and planted her hands on her knees. She shook her head, "You should already know that for missions like this, its not like we can say no-"

The man squared his shoulders, but his voice took on a more distressed note, "-And its not like you had to go through with that neither! Weren't you just telling me that he doesn't always follow every order he's ever given? He only does just enough to get by?"

"He does enough to keep us out of trouble, true," Cissnei stated rather blandly. "-But if we refused this, its not like it would've made any difference. The president would've sent someone from SOLDIER had Tseng refused. In fact, even if we did refuse something this sensitive, the president would've had us personally investigated." Her topaz stare softened here, "And frankly, we have a little more to lose this time around; besides our entire branch."

Zack shook his head and looked off to the side, wondering if she was actually referring to himself in that very last sentence. If that were the case, then that would mean the Turks couldn't refuse the most grizzly of orders; if its to keep the President from discovering Zack lying bed-ridden in their very own building.

But then... He realized. -Tseng didn't tell me that because... he didn't want me to feel like the sole reason he destroyed so many lives. He didn't want Shinra to search their building, and find me hiding beneath their very nose. He didn't want to admit that he'd willingly sacrificed fifty thousand people... for me.

...He values me, over that many others.

...And he's willing to destroy so many more lives, just for so few... for me, and the other Turks. He essentially committed a genocide of an entire section of the city, for us.

For all of us.

Zack felt bile surge in his throat; although it wasn't a sensation born quite out of pure disgust. Because to be frank, he'd willingly sacrificed what could've been a few hundred innocent souls just to glimpse Aerith again- mowing down an entire army of normal people for the well-being of Cloud. And if push came to shove, he was pretty sure he'd wouldn't want to give up Cloud and Aerith for fifty thousand people that he didn't know.

Not that he'd ever had the courage to make that call, admittedly.

But... why do we have to be killers just to be friends anyway? Now I can't help wondering... He continued to ponder. While Freedom's price is steep, what's worth the weight of camaraderie anyway? Why does it have to involve so much more pain?

Zack jerked in place when his clothes suddenly decided to slip from his bed to the floor; as if to physically draw him from that murky funk of his. Upon remembrance of his desperate need for a shower, he scooped them back up, somewhat glad of the distraction. If he sat here long enough and considered the weight of not only the Turks' sins, but his own for any longer, he wasn't sure he'd even have the gumption to even get up in the morning anymore.

He got to his feet and leveled Cissnei his most sincere gaze. And then he said just between them, "Yunno... I'd like to believe in all of that... Every last bit."

"...Me too," she whispered back, her tone lowered enough so that it sounded like she was whispering a great and damning secret.

Zack spared the girl his most earnest and charming smile; although the gesture was thin and fragile. He eyes fell back to his feet; his mind a bubbling quagmire that just couldn't quite settle. His frown lingered as he lumbered towards their shared bathroom, stopping just shy of the door before turning to Cissnei again.

"...Heya, Sis?"

"Hm?"

His smile returned full force this time, his chest suddenly several times looser, "For what its worth, even if Tseng or you or whoever else thinks they're not my friend, I'm still theirs- And I just want you to know that its especially true for you. Thanks for being straight with me- it goes a LOT further than you know."

The girl suddenly flushed several shades, and then abjectly turned away to hide it. Cissnei was usually great at poker masks; only ever bested by Tseng or Vincent. However, it seemed Zack's words were plenty strong enough to get through somewhere- and its something that assured Zack of exactly of what he needed to be assured in-turn.

"I-I know that," she sputtered, waving him off. "-And I know they know it too. But I just wanted you to know that its not as one-sided as you may think."

Zack bumped his shoulders, "Welp, I guess I know that now."

"Okay, good," she dismissively waved again, apparently too embarrassed to keep looking at him; something he couldn't help his confident grin over. "-Go take your shower. I can smell you from here."

"Want me to give you a thank-you hug first?" Zack gleefully offered; suddenly feeling a douchey, shit-eating grin tear its way across his face. He needed a break from all this doom and gloom, and making Cissnei miserably happy was just the only important and right way to do it.

Cissnei immediately jolted and bumped against the head-board of her bed, shaking her head furiously. "Oh no... No no no. You wouldn't dare-"

"C'mere and gimme a hug!" He boisterously threw out his arms, carelessly throwing his night clothes onto the floor. "I'm wide open!"

"Zack no-"

"Zack yes!"

"Zack NOOO-"

"Zack YES!" He ebulliently shouted as he leapt to her bed, eager to forget his troubles.

If for the moment.

Cissnei, with the adept swiftness of frantic, flightless bird trying to figure out how to fly in a free fall launched herself from the mattress just as Zack jumped onto it. She bolted to the other side of the room, trying to put as much distance between she and the asshole hugger as she could. "OhmygodZack don't-" she hissed, her nose wrinkling cutely as usual. "Get off my damn bed! I don't want to be smelling your freaking arm-pit sweat on my sheets all night!"

"Aw c'mon Sis!" Zack deliberately rolled across the mattress and kicked his legs up into the air, teasingly waggling them to and fro while throwing her his most cheesiest and sloppiest grin ever. "You're hurtin' my feelings here! Where's the love we were just sharing?"

"You mean the moment you just kinda ruined?" She scoffed. "Pretty much long gone by now."

"Then gimme a hug and we'll call it even!"

"Hard pass," She huffed. "And if you even try to hug me again, then I'll definitely follow up on those earlier threats I made about castrating you and sending those bits of you back to your parents."

"Jeez. I think you've talked about my balls more times than my own girl-friend," Zack winced.

"First of all... I cannot envision- for the life of me- Aerith of all people making any sort of lewd commentary on a man's general anatomy whatsoever. Secondly, it almost sounds like you have some kind of problem with your love-life," She jabbed at him.

"Awww. But that's because I have so much love to give and not enough people to share it with! You wanna come over here and say that to my face while giving me the biggest hug ever?"

"I'll tell Aerith you're cheating on her," she defensively tried.

"No you won't," he deliberately added on with a devilish smirk. He was now thoroughly their little chasing game now- as giving this girl the biggest hug he could possibly ever give her to compensate for all the ones she missed throughout her life was a quest worth pursuing. He knew she liked to keep a barrier between she and everyone else- but its something he's resolved to tear down ever since their little talk in Midgar.

And there was no way in Hell he was ever going to accept a 'no' from her, ever again.

"-You're just too embarrassed to get a hug from yours truly!" he cackled. "C'mon sis. There's nothing wrong with hugs between buds!"

"Nope nope nope. I'm good over here, thanks," she promptly denied.

"What makes you think this was an option?" He deliberately goaded.

"And just what makes you think you'd be able to catch me?" She narrowed her eyes.

"Challenge accepted," Zack reciprocated, borrowing her words from their time in Nibelheim.

He'd never been known to give up, no matter what the adversity. He only pressed his luck so far; but he did eventually get that hug. Cissnei made theatrical gagging comments and muttered something about his rank body odor repeatedly, but she didn't try to drop-kick him like she so dearly wanted. In all honesty, the hug was nice; and she couldn't deny that this loving, blithering idiot in front of her was a fantastic hugger-

Even if he did stink like he just took a dunk in a ginormous, radioactive vat of mako-charged arm-pit sweat.

~777~

The shiver that rippled through his body from spine to heel wasn't something he could solely attribute to the perpetual cold up here; even though its admittedly so spitefully frigid here that it makes you wonder if you committed some sort of unwholesome crime in a previous life and you're still paying for it.

And funnily enough, Reeve still couldn't help thinking that this may indeed hold true for his current life; seeing what he's allowed himself to be a part of. It didn't matter if he didn't have any direct involvement in their more recent crimes; for as far as he's concerned, his silence and inability to do anything to stand openly against Shinra might as well be about as helpful as him actually consenting to playing a part in dropping Sector Seven.

The cold was all too bitter here, and it had a deeply-seated effect that clung perpetually to your body if it was unaccustomed to the bitter temperatures; sinking right into the very marrow of your bones. For Reeve, it wasn't something he really wanted to be exposed to any longer than necessary- although its not to say it'll discourage him from touring the town the next day; when the sun was at its peak of course.

On an unrelated note, Reeve had considered bringing his aging mother here on vacation sometimes; but he was kind of relieved that it had never come to pass. The winds that whipped around the infamous Icycle Lodge and the town surrounding it would rip right into her brittle bones. More often than not, his mother was content on maintaining her vegetable garden anyways; and sometimes calling her son to see if he'd considered getting married yet- much to the man's bemused and somewhat embarrassed chagrin.

Reeve coughed into a woolen-clad fist, his mounting nervousness nipping right at his heels all the while. He carefully meandered (or more or less wadded) down the snowy street; the newly-fallen layers already piling up to his knees in some places. He watched the children briskly scamper about in the weather they've known all their lives; comfortably playing in areas that had been carefully cleared by the adults. However, it was very late now; and most were heading back into their toasty homes to eat dinner and warm up with the rest of the family.

It was a cozy scenery befitting a holiday card- a humbled beauty that he couldn't help wishing he could see in Midgar sometimes. However, Midgar rested in a temperate zone; and in the middle of vastly desolate wasteland that stayed consistently drab year-round. If any real cold had to happen anywhere around Midgar; it would be in the Sector Four ice rink.

As it was, Reeve's business here was to be conducted where there'd be no prying Shinra eyes and ears watching him; with no guards, drones, or Cait Sith escorting him as well. He had to come completely alone, and at a time where it seemed the weather would be at its most treacherously, sinfully brisk. And while Reeve loved the idea of cold weather after having lived in Midgar for so long, he just wasn't built for it.

The Head of Urban Development stopped before the one and only Icycle Inn itself, his hand tightening upon the handle of his briefcase. He had another pack thrown over his shoulder too; carrying with him enough warm clothes and their spares to make most people take pause. Even though he'd only planned to be here a night or two, he wanted to have the option of bringing extra layers.

This little excursion was meant to be an impromptu visit to an injured relative and on his mother's side and the doctor treating them; an aunt who supposedly went on her routine hike just outside town but got into an accident when a bear attacked her. Now this wasn't an uncommon occurrence; and its a sufficient enough reason for Reeve to warrant a request of leave from work that day.

In truth though, he really did have a relative living somewhere around here; but they weren't the explorer type, nor were they very close. They hadn't been made aware of Reeve's visit neither; as they're not particularly someone who liked nor cared about Reeve's current career choice. However, Shinra thankfully didn't care to look too carefully into this detail; and its something that Reeve's contact here had taken full advantage of. Said contact had arranged a supposed meeting with his aunt's 'doctor' to discuss what happened, as well as go see said relative the next day. The contact had also preemptively booked Reeve a room ahead of time- All Reeve had to do was give his name at the front desk.

For the millionth time that day, Reeve heaved yet another sigh that misted thickly out in front of him. He proceeded inside; wondering what in Minerva's good name would his contact be thinking in dragging him so far north for anyhow. Hadn't the military-grade encrypted video communicator been enough? Why would he would want Reeve to come all the way here if its just to talk? What in Gaia's name could be so important that it would warrant a few hundred miles worth of travel?

Reeve's stiffened fingers tightened their hold on the brief-case in hand; while shifting the weight of the pack over his shoulder in mild unease. He stopped before the desk, and then dipped his head respectfully at the receptionist, "Reeve Tuesti. I'm checking in on the account of a pre-booked room? The reservation was made by a man named Dr. Tian Li Kheng?"

The lady was clad in layers; despite the interior of the building being warmly secured. She looked up at him and smiled politely enough; even though she could tell he was Shinra. Having said that, her smile was as brittle as a thinning ice sheet; her gaze detached. Not for the first time, Reeve wished for a sudden change in careers as he felt her scrutiny bore into him.

"Of course," she said with some minor inflection of indifference. "Mr. Kheng has been expecting you. Your room is on the second floor; room 202. Would you like someone to take your things up for you?"

"No need, but its very much appreciated ma'am," Reeve smiled as kindly as he could, taking the key from her in the process. "All I'll be asking for is room service."

"Noted sir. I'll have someone sent up in about an hour, if you'd like."

"Please."

Reeve passed her his most earnest, winning smile he could; not wishing to make the woman anymore uncomfortable than she already is. However, he could see it had no outward effect; and he couldn't help his following sigh once he cleared her line of sight. For this reason, he had considered quitting Shinra; but he wasn't sure he'd be able to 'retire' the conventional way. Not without involving his poor mother in the process.

He took his time in climbing the stairs; feeling the weight of his trip drag heavily at his eye-lids. Frankly, he only wanted to warm up and go to bed; but some decent food and a mug of that infamous hot Icycle Lodge Cocoa sounded delightful. And after what felt like an eternity, he made it to his room and unlocked the door; fumbling with the key somewhat due to his chilly, shaking hands.

After dropping his bags at the foot of his bed, Reeve checked around for any bugs; of both the literal and artificial kind. He knew the Icycle Inn wouldn't have any real bed-bugs, but it didn't hurt to look. He also found no signs of listening devices neither, and couldn't help his belated breath of relief at that. He finally sat down and checked his phone in a vaguely disinterested daze; his exhaustion creeping steadily into place after all the headaches and scares of today- especially after the dreadful Intel he received from Cait Sith.

Its almost nine-thirty, he distractedly said to himself. Yet it feels so much later than that... Mr. 'Kheng' should've known I made it here within the first minutes of my arrival, knowing him.

Reeve threw back his head and closed his eyes; unable to tear his mind away from the latest portent he got from the mechanical feline:

The cat said that AVALANCHE had succeeded in carrying out a part of their more recent, more extreme approach to combating Shinra; killing Palmer and all of his assigned guards in the process. And that wasn't all; even Rufus had reported that his own personal guard were besieged by a cloaked gunsmith he couldn't identify. Rufus was injured in the following skirmish; but it was a superficial wound he'll recover from within days.

The weird part of this whole thing? Well, its the fact that even Rufus doesn't think the person who personally attacked him was someone from AVALANCHE's party. The only proof to back this statement though was the formation of the bullet holes in the bodies; a triangular formation that's usually distinguishable by a weapon AVALANCHE hasn't been known to posses- a three barrel pistol that isn't a common weapon to come across anymore, nor is it something the Midgar cell of AVALANCHE would even employ. While they've, yes, used a plethora of weapons that rose some brows; but nothing like this tri-barrel gun had ever been seen or used by them or their associates.

So who in the Hell attacked Rufus anyways? And was this mysterious gunslinger a member of AVALANCHE? How come he was invisible? Was it Cloaking materia like the Turks were known to use, and how did he ever get a hold of it? Why was he at the sight of crime just as the president came? Was it really just to wound him? Why didn't they just out-right kill him? Was he somehow covering AVALANCHE's tracks by killing all the witnesses to the debacle in Cid's back-yard?

Frustratingly enough, there really was no way of knowing what truly happened in the back-yard without any surviving eye-witnesses. The mess that had been discovered back there however was nothing short of grizzly; and something that made Reeve sick with indigestion:

A smattering of offal, blood-saturated mud, and the rag-doll twisted forms of bodies that were thrown unceremoniously by the Tiny Bronco's wild take-off greeted the investigators; the increasingly rank smell of excreted fluids of varying kinds rumored to make those that had been on sight throw up whatever they've ate that day. Cid's house and shed showed signs of being ransacked; but not for anything in particular except for some tools and clothes; among whatever other unknown provisions were likely deemed fit for travel use- probably the courtesy of AVALANCHE themselves.

On another note, Reeve knew why his precious S.I.T.H hot-wired the plane; seeing as it meant that Cloud's team could get an apt diversion so they wouldn't have needed to kill anymore of the guards than necessary. However, Reeve couldn't help wondering if it complicated the situation more than it helped. And it appeared to have been a fruitless endeavor; seeing as all of the guards that came with Rufus and Palmer died anyways.

What is this world coming too? Reeve couldn't help wondering. Will AVALANCHE come after all of us in-turn? Will they even be able to? Will I make that hit-list as well? While I can't help sympathizing with their respective troubles after all we've done to them, he internally reasoned. Now I can't help thinking they're only going to do more harm than good.

Still...

Reeve jerked when his door was rapped upon; having not noticed that he was steadily nodding off while he'd been in that reflective daze. He checked his phone again and noticed that the time had slipped to ten on the dot; the punctual appearance of his contact not at all unexpected. He groaned as he got to his feet, neatly straightening his clothes while he made it to the door.

"Yes yes. I'm coming," he said when the knock came again.

He blinked off his fatigue and primly fixed his hair; not at all tolerant of the idea of presenting himself in such a disheveled state. While Reeve was the kind individual that pretty much stuck out from the other Shinra executives, you couldn't deny that his worst vice was his vanity and expensive tastes- not that he ever let that rule his motivation for having stayed in Shinra for so long.

He peeped through the hole to be sure that the person he was expecting was there; but what he found instead wasn't someone who matched his contact's usually suave appearance and description. It was too hard to see anything clearly through the little peep-hole, but Reeve could've swore the man standing on the other side of the door was of purely Wutain ascent. His contact told him to expect this though; and so thusly did Reeve reluctantly open his door. He hid his creeping apprehension, smiling as genially as he could.

"Ah. Evening my good man," he tried formally while fighting the urge to immediately slam the door back shut. Reeve couldn't help darting his eyes down either side of the hallway; wondering if anyone was watching them. "I don't suppose you're ah... You're Dr. Kheng, right? The one who treated my dear aunt?"

He knew some Wutain warriors who may not have entirely forgotten the war would take the immediate advantage of killing an unarmed man of Reeve's standing; but it didn't mean that this one in particular would indulge the frightening hypothetical.

In fact, this person in front of him was very lean and of a similar build to Reeve; standing with a properly composed demeanor interwoven into his posture and neutral expression. He dipped his head respectfully; his short brunette hair bordering on black stopping just at his neck. His thin lips curled minutely, but not so menacingly as Reeve had half-expected. He was also still wearing his heavy coat with the melted remains of new-fallen snow; having likely come from another Inn or hotel nearby. In hind-sight, it probably made more sense that this man wasn't staying in the same building as Reeve- if to help evade detection.

"I am," said the other in response to Reeve's previous question, nutty brown eyes shrewd. "I'm hoping you're finding the room to your liking?"

Reeve nodded, hoping that the individual in front of him wasn't secretly planning on murdering him in his room tonight. However, his contact had firmly instructed him that he'd let this Tian Li Kheng in; although he'd been convinced that the name was merely his contact's own cover name and not an entirely different person as a whole.

A little baffled by this development, Reeve nonetheless mustered his scattered composure and gesticulated to his room, "Would you like to come in? I'm expecting room service. I'd like to talk about my aunt's condition and how she's doing-"

"If you don't mind?" The man somewhat clipped; and with what Reeve could've swore was a bead of sweat building at the base of his neck.

Certainly thrown off by the troubling sight of sweat on a man who should still essentially be about as cold as Reeve was, the latter still couldn't help wondering if this Tian had a weapon stashed somewhere on his person. Reeve shut the door, feeling his gut churn uneasily as he locked it and turned to Mr. Kheng-

Only to watch in sickeningly horrifying fascination as Mr. Tian's face began to fizzle away like mist in the morning sun; his brown hair lengthening and his complexion shifting a couple of slight pigments. Hurriedly, he tossed off his heavy coat to the floor and buckled; revealing the trademark tux beneath it. His almond-shaped eyes lost some of their shape; the typical brown turning into steeled obsidian trademark of a certain Turk in particular.

Tseng himself was now leaning against the table with all the weighted exhaustion of a man who just ran a full marathon without a single drop of water to sate him; panting and heaving like he was losing control over his own breathing. The Turk Director drunkenly tilted to and fro upon his footing; and then slipped into Reeve's chair with all the ceremony of a dying man whose bleed out his last bit of life. With shaking hands he clumsily slipped off his mittens and slipped a hand to his forehead; pinching the region beneath his tilak.

"Need to... improve that," he mouthed to himself in between gasps.

Reeve could only blink, wondering what in the flaming hells he just saw. He stood flabbergasted for the better part of an entire minute before he found himself again, folding his arms and feeling his jaw slip open a few contemplative times. He knew Turks were too good at covert work, but this was putting it to a whole other level.

Eventually, Tseng looked up at him; smirking somewhat as he absorbed the sight of Reeve's slack-jawed expression. "Don't tell Scarlet," he jokingly began. "She doesn't need any more magic rocks to fuel her secret fetish."

This random ice breaker immediately loosened something within Reeve; leaving the man laughing deeply from the belly-up. He couldn't help it; of all the ways his dreary day could've ended, who knew this crude attempt at a joke Tseng himself isn't known for making would be the highlight of today? Tseng chuckled along with him, although he didn't say anything else for longest minute.

"If you don't mind my asking," Reeve decided to inquire, his composure setting back in. "But uh... how did you do that? Some new materia, I presume?"

Tseng lifted his right arm and willed the orb into being; a very plain looking magic materia that could be mistaken for any other coming to view. "Yes. Its called Shape shift," he huffed, his following words clipped and breathless. "But it works more like 'face-lift', if you get my drift. Its experimental, and it doesn't work on the whole body. Its effect stays in a localized area from the neck up- and it drains far more energy than I admittedly like for an area so small." He shook his head, "Its a little frustrating to be honest."

"...Huh. How come I haven't heard of this new spell anyways?" Reeve asked as Tseng put the materia away.

"We don't need people as trigger-happy as Heidegger and Scarlet getting a hold of something so valuable," Tseng replied rather stiffly; his earlier humor passing. "Moreover, its not like we can make a lot of these; I literally only have two working ones- with the one I'm holding being a more recent make. The rest aren't stable, and the third is being tested as we speak. And after its done with the testing phase, I don't think I'll have anymore of these infernal things made. They're simply too finicky and volatile in nature."

"Ah. Of course," Reeve nodded, although he did find this development rather disturbing.

He didn't know how long Tseng could've been developing secret materia like this; nor who gave him the resources and equipment to even start. On the side, materia development wasn't something the Turks were responsible for; as its only something the aforementioned Scarlet spear-heads.

As an added bonus, Reeve hadn't known Tseng has had the power to do this for Minerva knows how long- nor if it was even possible to covertly produce new materia right under Shinra and Scarlet's respective noses. The tech needed for a monumental task like this required an entire lab in a remote area and several experienced staff; alongside a metric-shit-ton of power and a source to draw from- not to mention the resources needed to actually supply the mako to make these things. Operating beneath the radar wouldn't be an easy task neither.

This said, it made Reeve somewhat wary and rightfully paranoid of the Turk Director's secrets and the amount of power he could potentially already have- as well as just how far along his influence has spread beyond the unseeing eye... In a way, its more than just a little disconcerting.

And the really disturbing part? Well, the fact that Tseng was already comfortably showing him this made Reeve wonder just how confident he was that the latter wouldn't go around telling just anybody. Tseng must truly feel confident with his position and level of influence if he's just out-right telling an executive like Reeve about his new toys. What were the odds that Tseng would know how to 'silence' him, should Reeve let something slip?

Not that he would, mind you. Reeve wasn't that kind of person.

And maybe that's what Tseng is banking on: That Reeve, who is morally kind enough to help an old lady across the street without asking for any pay in return, was someone Tseng wouldn't have to worry about leaking information. Or rather, Reeve could let something slip to Rufus and the others, but he and Tseng would jointly be tried for collaborative treachery; and both men would end up being 'terminated' from their jobs. No matter how you slice it, letting word get out that Tseng has an illicit operation in the works would certainly damn both individuals. And therefore, Tseng can once again confide in the fact that Reeve wouldn't dare tell a soul about what he's up to.

And he's dragging me into it without so much as a warning.

Reeve had nonetheless decided to go along with it (for now), seeing as its most likely for the reasons he figures were worth supporting; as well as it being officially beyond his willing choice to make. After all, why else would Cait Sith have seen one of Tseng's own men- Glaive if he was remembering it right- bother with protecting AVALANCHE at all instead of leaving them to be killed? He understood that saving Aerith took precedence- but Cloud?

Not-uh. There was no way in hell Tseng was doing this... whatever it was... for Shinra's sole benefit. And that within itself was enough for him. And as far as Reeve can guess, Tseng was truly working towards either Shinra's downfall, or to benefit his own men in some way; if his suspicious call to talk alone like this wasn't enough of a hint within itself. Plus the efforts he put forth of using Glaive to save Cloud, and the reveal of his materia and theoretical secret lab that even Scarlet isn't aware of on the side. From just a couple sentences, so much had been revealed to him.

Just then, Reeve heard another knock at his door, and then went to answer it while Tseng continued to recuperate. He got his room service; ordered them a couple of drinks and some food, and made sure the lady left without seeing Tseng's face. No one here needed to know that Shinra's supposedly best cheer-leader and lap-dog was conspiring with one of its executive managers.

After moving another chair to a position directly across from Tseng's, Reeve sat with his hot chocolate and beef soup in hand. He set the tray on his lap, smiling complacently at the tuckered Turk before him. "Well then," he began. "Mind telling me what this is all about?"

"Is the door locked?" Tseng asked first; with a hand planted firmly over his fore-head. It was likely he was nursing a headache of some kind.

At Reeve's nod, the slightly younger man huffed with what Reeve figured was tired relief. Tseng took a sip from the coffee he asked for; and then threw back his head as if he just wanted to collapse in his own room for the night.

He sighed, and then he muttered thoughtfully, "Hm. Where to begin...?" He rapped his finger-tips across the handle of his mug, and then leveled Reeve a neutral look. He shrugged lazily, "Well, I suppose its fair to say that you're free to ask me whatever comes to mind- as I'll welcome whatever query you ask. In fact, you can even pick whatever question you want to start with, and I'll be able to answer accordingly. If you don't wish to do so, then I suppose I'll start us off formally."

Reeve raised a brow, taking a small sip of his hot chocolate as he considered this. After spending a brief moment considering everything else he's weighed earlier on, he said in response to this, "...I only want to know what the heck is going on here in general. And while I do have a lot of questions, I wouldn't know where to even start."

Tseng nodded understandingly, and then dropped the hand resting on his head to his lap, "Fair enough. Then, I suppose I'll jump right into it."

"If you please," Reeve nodded.

The Turk Director paused to raise a hand over his mouth; seemingly stifling a budding yawn. And then, he began:

"-If I had to be frank, I really don't much agree with some of Rufus' latest motions; let alone whatever the late president deemed as a 'proper' business maneuver," he said. He took another ginger sip of his coffee, his expression flatter than paper, "As it is, even though Rufus hasn't really cared much for his father's decisions and the consequences he's reaped, I don't really see him trying to do anything to 'fix' what he's done... nor do anything that'll much differ from what his father's ways-"

His slate-colored eyes darted to Reeve; as piercingly sharp as a polished, flint-tipped arrow-head. "-I'm afraid that the long and short of it is this: He's going to lead us down the same dark and dreary tomorrow as the late president had while mowing down whoever else doesn't fall in line with his current 'vision'. And while I understand the term 'trimming the fat' is usually a healthy way to approach business-" He air-quoted this, "-I don't want him to eventually involve my brothers and sisters within the Turks; both inside the company and out. I'm afraid he'll do worse to them than the late president and Scarlet combined."

Talk about blunt force trauma. He's not even trying to sugar-coat the topic, nor dodge around it with crafty word-play as expected, Reeve suddenly realized with a tiny note of alarm. The elder man blinked, putting down his delightful mug of hot chocolate he couldn't even enjoy. He tented his hands together; seeing that there was much more to be said. So, he remained pensively silent as Tseng went on.

"-More importantly, I know that Rufus' more forward way of thinking will eventually doom Aerith-" Tseng added on while tapping his fingers on his mug's handle once again. "-As well as the rest of us with this foolish notion of pursuing the Promised Land. Now that I think about it-" he scoffed rather contemptuously, "-You'd think chasing a child's fairy tale would be below Rufus. And yet, he's decided that its taking first priority over all else despite it being an ambition that his not-so-well-liked father sought after. Who would've thought that the allegory misconception of an ancient legend would be something these two actually agree on? Of all things."

Reeve tried to muster the gumption to even smile ironically at the observation, but couldn't really do so. Instead, he merely summarized while remaining strictly to the point, "So basically, you just don't want us expending all our time, energy, and risking lives unnecessarily going after this Promised land- as well as reduce the amount of risk for your underlings and Aerith-"

Tseng nodded, holding out his mug and raising it to his lips again in a minor show of his confirmation. "They're not my underlings, but yes," he casually said. "-I wouldn't think that it much differs from how you feel about this whole debacle and your own position in it. You're the only one who remained rigidly opposed to the whole Sector Seven event, and I know some of Cait Sith's latest actions were made to more or less support AVALANCHE instead."

His flat expression shifted; lips curling minutely at the corners, "-And, I certainly know for sure that he wouldn't have made these recent decisions without your direct input- like say, in the case of Palmer-"

Reeve was suddenly unable to finish his soup. He had a feeling Tseng had been waiting to get to this part of the conversation in particular.

The Turk director's eyes glinted, and there was no mistaking the confident glow within his usually placid demeanor. He then said quite carefully, "...You could've had Cait Sith misdirect Cloud's cell so they wouldn't have gone after him. Its not like Palmer really did do anything directly antagonistic to them- Not like Scarlet and Heidegger in particular-" Tseng shuffled his shoulders and went on tonelessly, "And yet you didn't... despite the danger it'll eventually pose you. You do realize what'll happen if Rufus caught word that Cait Sith was present for Palmer's impromptu execution, and he didn't do anything to stop them?"

The Head of Urban Development felt his throat dry, but he kept his expression as unwaveringly straight as possible.

Tseng twitched a brow, but then harrumphed good-naturedly, "-Not that I'll actually report that little detail, mind you. As it is, this only helped me concrete my reasoning for calling you out here. If you can believe it, I've had qualms about telling you about what I'd dragged you all the way North for." He bobbed his shoulders, placing one hand upon his lap while the other went over the arm-rest, "I suppose its fair to say that perhaps my judgement of your character and level of moral dexterity won't challenge anything I have planned. On the contrary, I think it'll compliment it."

"A proposition I take it?" Reeve tried as his nerves settled somewhat, but not all the way.

"Not quite," Tseng politely in-toned. "More like, a promise of a mutually beneficial partnership which isn't quite a compromise you can say 'no' to. And just so we're clear- I'm not hanging an ominous threat over your head." He shook his own head there, "-Its actually something we really don't have the luxury to refuse- especially since I don't see either of us living past the next few months without aligning our interests in some way."

Reeve folded his arms, although the gesture wasn't meant to be rude or dismissive. If anything, it demonstrated his reluctant agreement.

"Have you heard of the Septimus Sect?" Tseng coyly tried next, somewhat shifting the topic.

"Can't say that I have," Reeve replied honestly.

"Good. Then we're doing our jobs well enough," Tseng scoffed, seemingly mollified by the elder man's answer. Relieved, even.

"...Does this have anything to do with your secret materia, and that agent of yours that defended Cloud?" Reeve smartly assumed.

Tseng actually out-right chuckled at that; his cold gaze several degrees warmer. "Now you're catching on. I suppose it'll save me the time to fully explain it all, thankfully," he almost chortled.

Reeve gesticulated somewhat, "Even so... Now I can't help wondering: If what you're doing really is to undermine the current president's machinations, then why the sudden change of heart? I could've swore you once wholly supported Rufus and the idea of pursuing the Promised Land some time back- no matter its credibility as either myth or otherwise. Now that I think about it-"

His stare intensified, "-You could've used your information about my control over Cait Sith to misdirect Cloud's party against me: You could've reported my inaction to the president and have me veritably lynched within the hour if you so choose. It would certainly concrete Rufus' support in you, all the while saving your fellows within the Turks. You could even get Scarlet permanently off your tail-"

His coal-colored brow deepened, "-What I don't understand is what Rufus could've done to shake your support in him when he, just earlier this year, saved the Turks from total termination after the crisis. I just don't understand why you'd turn on him when he technically saved you and expanded your branch as of recently." He leaned back, shook his head, and felt his frown increase in fervor, "I just don't see the logic in your own movements in this case. I'd like to think that what you're doing might be an ethical, probable cause I could fully get behind- but I want to see proof that you earnestly want this. You know?"

Tseng could only smile in reply; and while it had been small before by comparison, now it was an blatant grin that had never been glimpsed before upon his person. He even laughed out-right; as if Reeve had said something insanely humorous. A whole half-a-minute passed as he belly-laughed, although it felt much longer to the elder director. If nothing else, the sudden laughter had shocked Reeve into total silence.

When the laughter finally died, Tseng smiled in a self-satisfied way and entwined his fingers. "...Its not what Rufus has done," he eventually said after reclaiming some of his trademark composure. "-But a matter of what he will do. Although, you're absolutely right: I could theoretically use my Intel to have you sacked and put the Turks in a more favorable light." Tseng waved it off, his smile staying in place even as it lessened somewhat, "But I wouldn't be able to quite live with myself if I sacked someone whose of a like mind as one of my closest brethren."

Reeve pursed his lip, but said nothing to this. He didn't know who Tseng was talking about specifically, but he couldn't be more glad of this unknown individual's influence.

Tseng was seen drawing out a small pack of files, and then handed it to Reeve. "Take a look at these," he said. "Hopefully, it'll better sell what I'm offering. Your 'proof', as you so eloquently put it."

Reeve took the unlabeled bundle of manila envelopes and opened them; a little puzzled to see its contents: In alphabetical order, he saw an entire list of Turk names and dossiers; of members who've been marked as K.I.A or M.I.A throughout the years. Consistently, Reeve saw that each individual had a red 'X' over their grim-looking portraits; and they seemed to have no more existing connections like surviving family or anything of the like.

He couldn't help the following gulp; feeling very much like he had a series of bloated, pus-filled pustules lining his throat. "What am I looking at?" he eventually queried.

"Take a look at the last one," was Tseng's cryptic reply.

Reeve flipped right to the last one; finding the likeness of a young man with almost perfectly maroon eyes. An unusual trait for some family lines to have admittedly; but that wasn't the surprising part. As Reeve surveyed the man, he couldn't help finding something almost eerily familiar about the man's facial features and generally genial expression. He had short hair that was neatly combed to one side, and a blue tux instead of the typical black ones Turks are known to wear today. And as if to confirm the following observation, Reeve saw that the date of the man's service was something along thirty years ago.

"-'Vincent Valentine'," he read aloud, summarizing the rest of the information as he came across it. He raised a brow at the next part; realizing that the familiarity came from the following portent, "-A.K.A. Tri-Barrel. Son of Dr. Grimmoire Valentine. Last recorded mission; bodyguard work at the Nibelheim research cell. Personally requested by Dr. Gast. Currently M.I.A. Presumed dead. Huh." He looked back up at Tseng, "I still don't understand what I'm seeing though- I mean, why are you showing me these?"

Tseng leisurely gesticulated at the files in particular, his expression masked. "Vincent's case is special. That file wasn't in the records- which meant someone went to great lengths to erase any signs of his existence." The Turk director's eyes sharpened yet again here, "I had to have someone on the outside of any Shinra affiliation secure me this document; from a defunct base of operations outside Midgar. If I hadn't been told to look for this man specifically, I would've never found him."

Reeve's eyes wandered back to the dossier.

"-While all the other Turks have been reasonably and legitimately recorded to have died doing their jobs, or disappear as a result of some situation going F.U.B.A.R, Vincent is an interesting exception." Tseng's lips twitched again, "In fact, Vincent had a disagreement with Dr. Hojo at the time- and it ended up in a messy and abrupt end to Vincent's career- and a visit to the good doctor's lab."

Reeve felt his eyes flutter shut at the brevity of this; feeling increasingly anxious as Tseng went on, "But the best part about all this? Well, his case isn't really an isolated one neither, nor is it truly special in this way. There had been many more individuals within Shinra that had been unceremoniously 'donated' to Hojo and his subordinates throughout the years- and it has continued on until Hojo's recent resignation."

"And I'm guessing all this build-up leads into the reason why you don't support Rufus?" Reeve glanced between Vincent's likeness and back up to the Director.

The Turk nodded. "Yes. As it is, I have reason to doubt that Rufus would, even if I curry his favor, that the Turks would be exempt from any cruel and unusual punishments awaiting those who fail their missions or question his motives- As even a young vice president, he's willingly swept away anyone he believes in his way." Tseng propped a hand to his chin and shook his head tiredly, "Let's face it: There will be a great many more who'll come to Shinra looking to do good; but will no doubt end up either doing the opposite, or going 'missing' should they disagree with the company policies."

Reeve leaned forward somewhat to give the younger man the fullest weight of his attention, sensing that there's more oncoming.

"The thing is," continued the other. "I just don't want to see anymore Turks, nor the future recruits, to be subjugated to these kinds of situations. No matter how you slice it, nobody is allowed the liberty of a peaceful 'retirement'- As you already know." He leaned back in his chair somewhat, "Tell me something: What's the one thing you saw with each portfolio in your hands?"

While Reeve had been scratching his head over Vincent's case, he certainly did pay much closer attention to every individual in-turn now. He carefully went from Vincent's dossier to the one before him; and the one before that. Interestingly, he noted that each Turk had a few things in common:

One of which being that no single individual has ever been allowed to retire; nor had they any family that was particularly close or was simply non-existent. And yet the best part had yet to come; the more he looked on. Reeve felt his skin blanch several more shades as he noted the footnotes attached to the dossiers; all in which were linked to contacts that they've had outside Shinra.

Family, friends, friends of those friends; all who had connections to these missing Turks-

Reeve felt his mouth dry; despite the heady taste of the mixed, marshmallow and hot chocolate laying heavy upon his throat. Across from him, Tseng raised a brow, hands tented before him.

"...Gone," the elder man mouthed, the word the heaviest he's ever uttered. More damning than the sentence of the great Goddess herself. "They're all... all of their family. Even they were-?"

Tseng's eyes shut tiredly; slowly. "...Yes. There's a reason why Shinra prefers orphans. No family wants them; and no family has to be... leveraged, should any of their 'star' employees start questioning the wrong person. And its not just Turks-" He flicked his head, "But many others within the varying branches: Like SOLDIER or the R&D department itself. Anyone with certain qualifications irrevocably go M.I.A, with no out-standing exceptions. I have so many lists of these kinds of individuals from these branches up to my neck by now, the more I looked into it. And the worst part of it-"

The Turk leaned towards Reeve, beetle-black pupils darkened hollows in his skull, "-That many of these people ended up being fed to Hojo; both the 'retired' personnel and their loved ones. All fed to the ghastly experiments we deliberately turn a blind eye to. Each of these individuals are being experimented on; and then disappearing without a trace. I can't help wondering where they're going, and what the reason for it is."

"Do you think... that Scarlet and Heidegger know-?" Reeve tried.

"More than likely," Tseng shrugged. "But I'm just saying; even if AVALANCHE does go out of their way to start offing every single one of us, I have a feeling our fellow directors will go to extremes never before seen-" His gaze hardened, "-And its an eventuality that even I fear to see."

"The more AVALANCHE presses, the worse it'll get for everyone," Reeve huffed. "-Both outside the company, as well as in."

"Correct."

"And its not just the employees, but our families as well."

"Also correct."

The Head of Urban Development threw back his head and shut his eyes; wondering about the well-being of his mother anew. He even recalled the Banora Bombing; remembering how even the loved ones of AWOL SOLDIERS hadn't been spared the heel. It didn't matter if the treacherous employee had been disposed off; because even the innocents attached to that person will eventually get hurt too. After all, Shinra always did adore their favorite Code: Zero-Zero-Dark.

Funnily enough, Reeve had known this for quite some time now; not that he's ever readily accepted it nor put verbally-spoken words to it. Its just another one of those grim realities that you're faced off and you're forced to ignore until it actually happens to either you or a familiar.

And even Tseng has grown tired of the mold Shinra has fitted us all to.

"I know this may come as of a surprise to you," Tseng went on to say, interrupting the elder man's thoughts. "But I had yet one more file to show you, if you still don't believe my intentions."

Reeve blinked and almost lazily inclined his head; not that he didn't believe that some level of sincerity was present within the other. "...Oh?"

Tseng once again reached into his tux, and then passed Reeve another manila envelope. Unlike the previous one however, this one contained but a single file; and this immediately intrigued Reeve. He opened it, and then stared into the not-so-grim likeness of a young man whose smile pretty much nearly out-shone the glow of his mako eyes. He also possessed a blackened mane of slicked-back spiky hair and an interesting scar on his lower left cheek. Not unlike the Turks however, he also had an 'X' over his profile shot, and even a report detailing his death at a mission to Nibelheim.

"-'Zack Fair'," Reeve read thoughtfully aloud, wondering why he thought the man instantly familiar.

He then scrolled down to the yellow sticky notes stuck to the bottom of the page, and found the names 'Gregory Fair' and 'Miriam Sarah Fair' next; alongside many others of a similar nature. Like the names listed with the Turk files, he presumed all of these people were both family or friends of Zack's- and with a matching 'X' over theirs as a cherry on top.

Reeve heaved at this, almost exasperatedly. "So... what am I looking at, exactly? A SOLDIER profile?"

"Zack Fair and all of his associates," Tseng replied, his eyes suddenly shrouded with a mystifying light. "-Who all been promptly terminated in some way or another. Although, Zack's parents weren't directly targeted like his friends." The man leaned toward Reeve again, "As it is, the Gongaga reactor presumably did Shinra's bloody work for them and was rumored to have killed them in the resulting explosion. They sent me to investigate this personally."

"They wanted you to kill all of Zack's connections?" Reeve bluntly pressed.

"Yes. Both inside and outside of Shinra," he quite casually elaborated. "-So, if they really did survive that catastrophic explosion, I was to make sure the job was thoroughly done."

The elder man shook his head, feeling quite winded by this. "Talk about over-kill," he muttered more to himself than anything.

Tseng smiled suddenly; and it initially curdled Reeve's nerve until his next words, "They're not dead, you know."

"...Come again?"

Tseng inclined his head and smiled even more blithely; if you can imagine it. It had a crookedly clever, self-satisfied air to it that would make any looking on feel inferior to him; an odious display that he didn't bother to conceal. "Zack's parents and familiars aren't dead," Tseng said. "-Nor is the man himself."

Reeve darted glances between the profile picture and the names; and then focused onto Tseng squarely.

Tseng passed him one more file this time; and the very last for this night. This one was yet another Turk dossier; although the main difference was that this picture wasn't crossed out. Reeve eyed it, reading aloud the name "Garm Sturges" and scrutinizing the likeness on the page. The man looked pretty much nothing like Zack; but Reeve somehow wouldn't doubt that this was a phony profile.

He looked up again, his words hesitant and meticulous as he slowly offered, "And... the man who saved Cloud was... Zack?"

"Am amazing deduction, but yes," he confirmed.

"But... But this man is-"

"One of the familiars on the sticky foot-notes. Another target I was told to eliminate but didn't," Tseng jerked his head at the file again. "He's one of Zack's friends; a former SOLDIER with no prestige or infamy- unlike Mr. Fair himself. I used his self-imposed idea of being indebted to me to help me make a cover name for Zack. But make no mistake-" Tseng leaned back again, hands folded onto a propped up knee. "-That man Cait Sith saw in Rocket Town was certainly Zack Fair, in the flesh."

Reeve lowered the documents and packed them altogether; eventually passing them back to Tseng as he considered this. "You're making them 'disappear'," he murmured, eyes lowered. "But not in the truest sense... but, why? Why do this-?"

"Because Zack Fair is a close friend of mine," Tseng finally and bluntly told him. "-And I'm quite tired of having to pick my job over my associates to get me through the day-to-day. And after having subjugated my own men to the weighted decision of having to press that button in Sector Seven, I'm not prepared to lose anymore good people, nor their sanity, to Shinra's uncompromising policies. Do you not agree?"

Reeve couldn't help it; he just couldn't help wondering about the many targets Shinra had explicitly ordered this man before him to eliminate; and had consequently let go instead. In fact, I wouldn't it put it past Tseng to have been responsible for letting Cloud and his friends escape the main Shinra building the night the president died, he couldn't help assuming the more he looked on. It was said Cloud's cell block had been deliberately unlocked prior to Sephiroth's rampage; but no one saw the footage of that incident to prove it.

And yet...

The somewhat imposing, smug, almost all-knowing countenance of the younger man before him was somehow infinitely more intimidating to Reeve; as if Tseng truly was in control of much more than he lets on. Yes, he could easily sell Reeve to Rufus and lynch him. Yes, he could easily go back and assure the death of his targets if he so chooses. Yes, should Rufus get any wind of this, its possible Tseng had a number of bail-out plans to fall back on.

And yes, he'd cleverly steered Reeve into this dubious predicament; with no evidence to believe that he had a say in all this. He hadn't allowed Reeve the mere chance to say yes or no to their following (involuntary) partnership. But you couldn't deny that Tseng hadn't stated quite a few good points tonight; and having said that, its not like Reeve would've told him 'no' out-right.

But you also have to admit that all of this sneaky behavior was a whole new kind of deceit; one with no clear indicator that betrayed Tseng's willingness to help anyone but himself and his own interests: Even if those interests happen to be a genuine concern for his men. No matter how you slice it, Tseng could very well be helping his people escape this Hell the company had become.

And yet, Reeve still couldn't help feeling there was something else lost amidst the fancy words and seemingly earnest gestures that just may betray Tseng's truest intent- whatever that was. But until he could figure that out, he was literally stuck; in every kind of metaphorical sense.

So, it was in that moment Reeve watched in gradual slow-motion as Tseng held out his hand and suspended it between them; his expression a pragmatic mask that did let slip what the elder director hoped was some level of humbled sincerity. Tseng said nothing; his gaze as calculated and guarded and oddly inviting in every way he could possibly make it without breaking his characteristic composure. He kept his arm there, knowing that Reeve would be unable to properly refuse.

And it was in that regard, he was absolutely correct.

Reeve took the other palm; holding it firm as it gave it a slight shake. His lips were tighter than a fish's bung-hole on his face; but still Reeve smiled as confidently as he managed. "Well, alright," he slowly assured. "I suppose I can only give you my cooperation then."

"And I'm glad to have it," Tseng nodded. "I just wish it was underneath better circumstances."

Reeve hoped he wasn't pressing for too much already, but he felt he was allowed at least one good question before they wrapped up tonight's meeting. He carefully cleared his throat and leveled Tseng his most neutral expression; hoping to erase all signs of his unease as best he could. "-If I may ask," he anxiously inquired without having to put in the actual inflection. "Is there a true end-game to all this? I understand 'mutual survival' is good and all, and a truly sound reason within itself... But I can't help wondering-"

Tseng's next smile was now brittle; but perversely genuine enough to be convincing. Reeve couldn't help feeling mixed as he scrutinized the subtle gesture. "An 'end-game'-?" Tseng recited thoughtfully, seemingly tasting the words.

Reeve said nothing to this, waiting almost impatiently for the other to continue. A minute lapsed in this manner; or even more for all they knew. Still Tseng said nothing, his hands tented together and his eyes an opaque veil too thick to cut.

Finally, the man in the tux eventually said, "Well... I suppose there really isn't a clear one yet, huh? Not until we can see the day after tomorrow."

"...Erm, a metaphor, I take it?" Reeve wondered.

Tseng shut his eyes there, his facade suddenly much more fatigued. "You could say that," he confirmed.

Reeve wanted to ask what that meant, but he supposed their new partnership would have to eventually explain its fullest significance to him. And by the looks of it, Tseng truly did appear too tired to elaborate; even if he were truly a man of any honest virtue. Not that he was, mind you.

Just then, Tseng got to his feet and grabbed his woolen coat from the floor, his every gesture leaden and imprecise. It broke through his character; and strangely enough, the rather human sight of a man worn down to his very last threads instead of the ruthless, tireless leader of the Turks made Reeve feel more comfortable than he's been before this conversation had began.

So said he, "If I may, I'm going to return to my hotel room across town. I'm just too tired to hash anymore of this tonight."

Reeve felt almost miffed at that, but he understood. "Of course," he nodded.

"If you want, we can talk further tomorrow," Tseng continued, tucking his hands into his pockets and heading to the door. "I can only apologize for the fact I may have been too obtuse or something-"

"No no! I believe most of your points pretty clear," the Head of Urban Development reciprocated genially. "The only thing I don't understand is the use of the metaphor. A little cliche, don't you think?"

"I suppose it could posses more tact," Tseng huffed, stopping just shy of the door. "But it doesn't mean that I haven't used the saying incorrectly."

"Hm?"

There was a beat; and then, "We can always plan for the next day, and even the day after that. However, we can never truly account for whatever hurdles the following brings. Tomorrow is easily more anticipated because its nearer-" He slowly let his head tilt backward until he was eyeing the ceiling. "-But, as for the day after... not so much. Usually for a day like that, even I sometimes feel at a loss. Its my own lack of clarity that has been what's kicked me in the teeth, more often than not."

Reeve nodded at this, somehow truly finding a level footing with the other here; maybe even for the first time that very night.

Just then, Reeve watched as Tseng held up the shape-shift materia and glance back over his shoulder; his beetle-black gaze silhouetted by his light skin-tone. "I'll be seeing you tomorrow, Mr. Tuesti. I believe I have some calls to make before I can truly lay down for the night."

"Alright. You be safe out there," Reeve genially said.

"To that, I can make no assurances," Tseng wryly replied with an unsettling, sardonic twist of the lip.

And with that, he (hesitatingly) activated his materia and shifted into the likeness of this Mr. Tian Li Kheng. He headed out the door with the brusque, chilling swiftness of a random northern zephyr; minus the whistling wail that followed. It still left Reeve to wonder though, if he truly did make a good decision that night.

Not that he would know until much later.