Author's Notes: Wow, quite a few reviews came with that last chapter. At any rate, glad you're all still here. And in case anyone was wondering, I neglected to mention up until now that Vaed was the inner of my little contest from chapter six. The Jackal is indeed the gun favored by Alucard of "Hellsing," and Vaed made Kenjiro Matsuo. Other people got the right answer, but he or she got it first. Anyway, hope you all enjoy this current chapter. By the way, once the story is a bit closer to being finished, I'm thinking of putting up what might be considered a prequel. If anyone is interested, I'll see to it that it gets posted. Enjoy!

The Fourth Day: Morning

Cloud yawned and ran a hand through his hair. "Honestly, you'd think someone would want to shut this place down. It's not even sunup and that bass line could kill small animals."

Sora had never liked nightclubs. He hated consistently loud noises. He very much preferred silence, pierced, if necessary, by staccato notes that left everyone who didn't expect them reeling. Standing across the street from Grain of Sand was all that really needed to happen to convince him that getting their message across inside would be difficult, unless of course someone just so happened to shoot out a speaker or two.

The bouncer was glaring at them, even as he glared at the rather long line of people trying to get in. He was one of those rare fellows whose default look is an irritated glare, and he had obviously been working very hard to perfect the visage. His slight fairly slight frame was uncharacteristic of a man in his position, but the shiny head and tinted glasses were par for the course.

"I get the feeling we'll need some kind of permission from this Rose guy if we feel like getting in sometime today," Sora said, trying not to let his lack of sleep slur his words. His ordinarily confident voice was now slightly gravelly. The first he would do when he got home, he swore, was have a nice freezing drink.

Cloud shrugged and pulled a pager out of his pocket. He smiled and gestured towards the bouncer with it. The bouncer raised an eyebrow, but kept up the glare. It was a glare for the ages; the man was truly an expert in his craft. Cloud quickly put in a number and smiled.

The bouncer seemed to be having his tiny little mind blown as he quickly reached into his pocket and pulled out his own pager. As soon as he had glanced at the name of the caller, his façade vanished, and now he was no longer glaring through his glasses but taking them off and squinting in a very "Is that who I think it is?" manner. He grinned as he put his glasses back on and beckoned to them.

"Problem solved," said Cloud as he triumphantly slipped the pager back into his pockets and started across the street, Sora in tow. "Been a while, Rude."

"Strife," the man said as he shook Cloud's hand. "Here to see Reno?"

"Naturally," Cloud replied. Sora could tell that the two men, however well they knew each other, were not exactly prone to long debates on interpretations of The Divine Comedy. Rude stepped aside and let them in.

Sora went in first. He instantly regretted it. The music was loud enough to pierce flesh at twenty yards, and the speakers were only five feet away. He couldn't even decipher notes, only noise. He might have popped if Cloud hadn't tapped him on the shoulder and nodded over to a door.

As Sora walked towards the door, which he could only assume was the manager's office, he tried to think of what exactly he was doing. His chances of proving his innocence were slim, and his chances of being pardoned by the CIA were laughable. No matter how much Kairi loved him (and, he reminded himself, even that might be a ruse), there might not be any bloodless way out his current situation.

The door had been festooned with a bronze knocker shaped like a rose. Sora lifted it and bashed it against the door four times, wondering just what the door must be made of in order to block out the sound. After a couple of seconds, the door opened a pinch and they were ushered in.

"Cloud!" said a red-haired man who had opened the door. "Never thought we'd see you again. And who's this?"

Cloud hugged the man briefly. "Good to see you, Reno. This is Sora Hikari, my partner. We need some information."

"Naturally," said Reno. He gestured for them to sit in one of the many beanbag chairs in his "office." Sora had to admit that, while comfortable, he felt more than a little idiotic sitting in a blue beanbag chair. The entire room was off in some way, from the way the little glasses of tequila sat so perfectly on the shag carpet (as opposed to tipping over like they should), the shimmer that the red lights made when they shone on the leather worn by the woman in the room, who was sitting in the only real chair, the way Reno sat catlike on the floor at the woman's feet. The woman toyed with Reno's hair a little as she addressed Sora and Cloud.

"I'm Elena, Mr. Hikari. It's been far too long, Cloud. What can we help you with?"

"The Syndicate told us that someone here recently filed an order for services rendered, with a price of over a million dollars. The call was made from this club, by someone with access to the private lines," Sora explained. "We need to know who made that call and why."

He looked to Reno to respond, and was a bit surprised when Elena replied. "I know of no such thing. We are hardly in the position of hiring an assassin for one million dollars." She looked down at Reno. "It is rude not to offer our guests a drink."

"Yes, of course," Reno said, abashed as he hurried over to a small bar and fussed with some glasses and a bottle. "Sorry, Mr. Hikari. Sorry, Cloud. Sorry, Elena."

Cloud ignored him and focused on Elena. "We'd appreciate it if some inquiries were made as to the source of the call. We're certainly not accusing you, but is it possible that someone in the staff did it?"

Rude hurried back with drinks for Sora and Cloud, and then returned to his place at Elena's feet. The woman seemed a bit annoyed by Cloud's question and patted Reno lightly on the head. "Reno, answer the question."

Reno opened his mouth to speak, but hesitated for a moment. He turned to Elena and seemed to be silently pleading with her about something. Seeing his face, she nodded and smiled sweetly, and Reno took a sip of tequila before turning his attention to Cloud.

Her grip on him is that tight? Sora thought. Impressive.

"Elena will look into it, but she really doesn't think anyone who works here has a million to spare."

Even has him speak for her.

"That is all we ask, and we thank you for your cooperation," Sora said. He and Cloud stood and made for the door, which Reno leapt to his feet to hold open for them.

"Cute couple," Sora remarked after he and Cloud were outside. "Kind of like Punch and Judy, but with the genders reversed."

"Yeah, but more importantly, now we know that the call definitely came from there."

Sora eyed his partner, trying to discern how he had arrived at that conclusion. "I assume it's because he had to check with his mistress before talking to us?"

Cloud looked thoughtful for a moment, his eyes cast towards the sky. "Well, yes. That and the fact that Tseng over there obviously wants to tell us something." He nodded to a man in a dark suit in front of them. Hearing his name, the man approached them with a wave.

"Evening, Cloud, Mr. Hikari. Reno is lying, as you surmise. His brother, Axel, is the one who placed the extraordinary order for Ms. Yamato's death. He does not have access to the manner of wealth required to pay you. I do not know why he did this, but it is my belief that someone forced him to do. Reno lied in order to protect his brother."

Cloud shook Tseng's hand and smiled. "Why, thank you, Tseng, you've been most helpful. Might I ask how you came across this information?"

Tseng shrugged. Sora locked eyes with him and fixed him with a baleful stare. "You're with the Syndicate."

For once, Cloud felt very small. Physically, he towered over both Sora and Tseng, but as they glared at one another, he felt fear in the presence of such strong wills. They had met mere seconds ago, and both were convinced of their supremacy.

Finally, Tseng smiled, and shrugged again, this time more casually. "Well said. And for such a deduction, I am happy to present you with one piece of information. Ask me anything."

Sora and Cloud were both startled by this. A Syndicate member saying he would give you information was similar to a billionaire saying he'd give you a whopping raise. Giving away knowledge for free was tantamount to treason, and the punishment was death. Tseng's emphasis on "one" meant that Sora had to choose carefully. After some thinking, he found the perfect choice. "Tell me about Kenjiro Matsuo."

Cloud was confused by the unfamiliar name, and even more so by Tseng's stunned silence. He'd known Tseng for years, and it took a lot to knock his clam demeanor away. He obviously hadn't expected this to come up, whatever it was.

"Very well," Tseng said slowly, his eyes twitching. Clearly, giving away this information was very dangerous, and wasn't what he had been hoping to do. He was, however, honor-bound to comply. "The name 'Kenjiro Matsuo' means 'fate's prey,'" he paused, and looked around. There was no one else nearby, but his anxiety was palpable. "And there was never a price on his head."

Sora's eyes widened. "What?"

"You heard me!" Tseng whispered furiously. "The man that killed him wasn't hired to do it."

"And who was that man?" Cloud asked, though he thought he already knew the answer.

"One piece of information, that's it," Tseng hissed. He spit at Sora's feet. "Little pigsucker. I should kill you for this."

No sooner was his final word out of his mouth then Sora had reached into his coat, brought out his pistol, rushed forward and pressed it close to Tseng's chest. "One piece of information was the deal, yes. But remember, boy, that not even the Nightshade Syndicate can protect you from Sora Hikari."

"You're a lot like the Syndicate, then," Tseng said, throwing caution to the winds, and then sniping at it. "You can't protect people from assassins either."

At this, Cloud kept perfectly still, but silently he was rooting for Sora to quickly cut Tseng open.

"How can you even think of that?" a voice said to him. "He was your friend once!"

"He's blaming you for what happened to Larxene, Cloud, just like Sora and Yuffie do," Sephiroth's said mockingly. He managed to shut both voices out and silently watched the exchange.

With his off-hand, Sora took out his knife from his coat and quickly drew it across Tseng's left ear, leaving a thin trail of blood where it passed. The man flinched, but grew still, even mindful of the gun still at point-blank range. "I would not advise you to continue in this vein, or I may have to relieve you of a few."

"Awful pun, Mr. Hikari," Tseng said, his proud voice trembling with fear. "But I did indeed speak out of turn. You have my sincerest apologies. If you'll let me be on my way, I have accounting to do at the Grain of Sand."

A few tense seconds passed, and then Sora drew his knife and gun back into the folds of his light coat. Tseng's confidence returned with the lifting of his impending death, and he smiled widely at his two companions. "Well, then, I bid both of you gentlemen a good day. Axel will be here in the evening. I shall make it a priority that I am rather far away."

"A pleasure speaking with you," Sora said as he and Cloud brushed past him.