By Kristen Gupton-Williams

Everyone walked together towards the temple, mostly in silence. When they got to it they entered, finding Tseng lying in a casket placed up on an ornate altar. The smell of incense and flowers hung heavily in the air. A short table much like the one that had been in the preparation room rested before the altar, covered in the same items that Vincent had been using the night before. There was another low table near to the entrance of the temple and on it rested the items for the Tea Ceremony.

The crowd gathering quickly filled the seats and Vincent, Tifa, Jaras, Jeanine, and Yokazi sat in front. Vincent looked back over his shoulders at those attending, quickly spotting Rude sitting toward the back of the room. He took notice of Vincent's stare and waved with his left hand, a pair of white gloves clutched within it, indicating that he had been invited as a pallbearer.

As they all settled in, the temple bell rang three times, indicating that the monk was coming. Vincent leaned over and whispered into Tifa's ear, "It's time for you to go make the monk's tea."

She looked at him with a bit of trepidation before rising up. Tifa made her way to the small table near the door and went to the far side of it, seeing that this was where her preparation items were laying.

The monk entered and all those present rose. He came over to Tifa and bowed which she returned. The monk then knelt down before the tea table and Tifa sat as well. Not betraying the nervousness she felt she methodically preformed the Tea Ceremony just as Vincent had shown her the night before. Once the tea was made, she handed it to the monk with a bow. He took it into his hands, turned it three times and then drank. As he handed the bowl back to her, he smiled. "Well done."

He then got up and made his way to the front of the room and after Tifa finished cleaning the items she followed and retook her seat next to Vincent. Everyone in the room then sat.

The monk bowed and then knelt before Tseng. He rang the bell there three times, made an offering of incense and then picked up a scroll lying on the table. He opened it and read the Sutra written upon the paper. The reading lasted ten minutes, the monk rocking rhythmically with the chant. When done, he again rang the bell and dropped more incense in the burner. He rose up and faced the congregation. "It is now the brother's turn to speak."

Vincent got up and went forward. He briefly knelt before the table and said a prayer, rang the bell, and dropped a pinch of incense in the burner. That done he got up and faced everyone. Vincent had never been a fan of public speaking and hesitated a moment before saying anything.

Finally, he pulled a folded piece of paper from a pocket and cleared his throat. "I never thought that I would be speaking at my little brother's funeral."

He let a short silence pass as he struggled to suppress the tightness in his throat. "Tseng and I spent most of our childhood fighting and at times, trying to kill each other. I know that just made us typical boys but if I knew then what I do now, I don't think I ever would have been able to stay angry at him like I did when young. We were separated for a long time after the death of our father and his mother but despite the distance that was put between us we stayed close. He looked up at me back then, so much so that he eventually followed in my footsteps to become a Turk. Despite his young age, he managed to work his way to the top, becoming the best that the Turks had to offer. He was fiercely loyal to his job; the model employee.

Due to circumstances he and I were torn apart for well over thirty-five years. After Meteor, Tseng found himself with a chance to start his life over. He took the same conviction and loyalty that he had shown as a Turk and turned it into a force for good by founding ASRIO. Tseng built the resistance with the same drive, determination, and dedication of service that had made him such a great Turk.

Thanks to his consideration and concern we were eventually reunited. Not only do I owe him my life as well as that of my wife, but he also brought me together with my son as well as a daughter that I didn't know existed.

My life is not the only one that was touched by him, though. Over the years through his work with ASRIO he has saved and improved the lives of countless others. This world would be a much different place with out what he did, and for that we all owe him a huge debt of gratitude.

Tseng was a man filled with honor and was a credit to his Wutain heritage. I will miss him deeply." Vincent's last words trailed off as the tears that he had managed to hold back that long finally won out. He hurriedly retook his seat, not wanting to have everyone watch him break down.

The monk came forth again and made one more offering of incense. As he did this, Vincent managed to tell Tifa that it was time for her to return to the tea table. She quickly obeyed and was soon followed by the monk. Tifa made the second offering of tea, thinner than the first and was again given a look of approval by the monk as he returned the bowl to her.

The monk rose from the table and stepped into the doorway. The bell to the temple rang three times; indicating to the pallbearers that it was time to take Tseng out. Vincent, Reno, Jaras, Quigley, Ericson, and Rude pulled on the white gloves they had been given and stood. Vincent approached his brother's body first, reaching out and closing the casket's lid. Then the other five men gathered around and took hold of the coffin, hoisting it up onto their shoulders.

The six pallbearers carried the casket out of the temple. There was a horse drawn cart waiting out front onto which they loaded the coffin. That done, the carriage driver signaled his horses to go and the cart slowly made its way down the street.

Tifa came to Vincent's side as he stood watching the cart retreat. "Now what do we do? Are we going to the cemetery for the graveside service?"

Vincent smiled down at her through his tear-reddened eyes. He knew that Tifa didn't know any better. "The funeral is over now. The monk's reading allowed Tseng's spirit to pass over into the next world. His body is just a shell now, there is no more reason to follow it or pay it tribute."

Wutain custom or not, Tifa felt a little weird to watch the cart carrying Tseng's body disappear into the distance without them going along. "So we don't go see where he's buried?"

"I can show you tomorrow." Vincent placed an arm around her shoulders, seeing that she was having trouble understanding. "For now, we need to let the undertaker do his job in peace."

Their moment was broken as Cid came up and clapped Vincent on the back. "You did a hell of a job man. He'd be proud."

Vincent, unaccustomed to hearing praise from the pilot smiled at him weakly. "Thank you."

Rude came up with Reno at his side. Vincent looked at the two men and sighed. "Reno, thanks for inviting Rude."

Reno shrugged. "I knew the boss would have liked him here. Have the old gang together one last time, you know."

"I wouldn't have missed it for the world." Rude said quietly. "Even if I did have to lie about where I was going for a few days. Not that I minded seeing Reno and Porter again, either."

Reno looked over at Vincent. "Hey, Rude, Porter, and me were going out tonight to have some drinks on Tseng's behalf. You can come if you like, seeing as that you meet the old Turk qualification."

"I appreciate the invite, Reno." Vincent pulled Tifa a little closer to him, "but I think I'll stay in tonight."

Immediately getting a lewd expression, Reno replied, "Oh, I see."

There was another interruption when Yuffie managed to push her way to the crowd to come before Vincent. "Vince, um, I'm sorry about Tseng."

He nodded at her, "thanks Yuffie."

She then looked over at his wife before locking gazes with him again. "I know this really isn't any of my business, but where's Tifa?"

Tifa laughed, knowing that few people would recognize her the way she was currently made up. "Yuffie! It's me!"

"Tifa?" Yuffie scrutinized her for a moment. "Oh my gosh, I thought you were someone else! You're beautiful!"

"Thanks!" Tifa replied, giggling a little.

Yuffie's short attention span was then drawn to Cid. Once she spotted the older man she immediately ran to him. She threw herself into his arms as they were currently not occupied by his baby. "It's been so long!"

Cid rolled his eyes and placed his arms reluctantly around her. "Not near long enough."

"Oh, you kidder!" Yuffie laughed as she stepped back, oblivious to the fact that he was dead serious. "Tifa told me on the phone a while back about Shera." Suddenly her whole demeanor changed as her spark of energy seemed to fade for a moment. "I'm really sorry."

Cid shrugged it off, already being pained by the memory of her death courtesy of the funeral. "It's okay."

"So where's this baby I've heard about?" Yuffie said, again getting excited.

"Sunshine's aunt has him at the moment." Cid said, glancing over at Vincent.

Yuffie at once remembered the pilot's tendency to grant Vincent embarrassing nicknames and she laughed. "You gonna let him keep getting away with that, Vince?"

Hearing her call him 'Vince' was by far more irritating than Cid's pet names for him, but he opted for the better part of valor and didn't share this information with her. "Yeah, I am."

"Well hey, I'll see you guys later, I've got to go track down that baby and get a look at him. See ya!" With that, she disappeared back into the crowd.

Vincent looked at Tifa and smiled. "Let's go back to the house."