*Chapter 6: Suspicions*
Cyrus arrived in Sector 7 and went on her way to the place to see Jay and Viola again. As soon as she arrived, she gasped to see Hiedra walked out of the building. Cyrus hid behind the wall when she overhears a commotion. Frank's voice is heard.
"You got what you need, now get out of here!"
"You're lucky I'm not here to spread my poison in this place. Those lapdogs will come. I'm only here for some materia. Even this." Hiedra took out the red materia. A summon materia. Cyrus wondered which summon he has.
"Get out. And never step foot in this place again. AVALANCHE will have your head!" Frank warned the warlock. Hiedra scoffed and disappeared in the dark portal. He has Portal Materia. No one has it. Cyrus came out of hiding and walked in the building.
"Hello?" Cyrus called. Frank turned to her. "Are you okay? What did Hiedra do to you guys?"
"Oh, you again?" Frank grunted. Jay and Viola came out from the back to see Cyrus. They sighed in relief. "Look who's back. Sephiroth's sister."
"It's Cyrus."
"Whatever."
"Thank Gaia that creep is gone." Jay said.
"He took some of the materia." Viola said. "He took the Leviathan summon. That's the one I planned to obtain." Cyrus walked over to them.
"Is there a reason why he took some of your materia?" She asked. Frank shook his head at Jay and Viola to them. "Are they for AVALANCHE?" Cyrus asked, slowly turning her head to Frank.
"No!" Jay quickly said.
"We need them. And..." Viola picked out the Water Materia. "Oh, thank Gaia. He didn't take this one." Before she could finish, Quinn and Dakota walked in. Cyrus turned to see them. Jay and Viola remained calm. Dakota noticed Cyrus and grabbed Quinn by the arm.
"Oh! Hi again!" Dakota said with a smile. "Remember us?"
"Yes..." Cyrus replied, crossing her arms. Jay and Viola quickly put away the materia. Quinn and Dakota turned away, whispering to one another. Frank couldn't help but to smirk. He had a feeling that they are covering up since Cyrus was part of Shinra. "Did you find your bar yesterday?" Cyrus asked.
"Yeah. Yeah, we did." Quinn replied, sounding casual. "So, what brings you here?" Dakota elbowed him. "What?"
"Just visiting." Cyrus said. "But now I'm wondering what Hiedra is up to since he took some of the materia." She turned to Jay and Viola. "Take care and stay safe." As soon as she left the building, Jay rushed out to stop her.
"Hold on! You're going after him alone? Do you know where he could be hiding?" He asked. Cyrus is silent. Hiedra could be hiding anywhere in Midgar. Where could his secret home be? Now that is something Cyrus will have to figure out sooner or later. Maybe it's best not to look for Hiedra without any leads. "Don't worry about us. That viper won't come back. He's got what he needs." Jay said.
"Still, I want to know what he is up to. Who is he? And where does he come from? Why come to Midgar?" Cyrus wondered as she paces. Quinn and Dakota looked each other in question. They are not familiar with the name or know who he is. Right now, they must act like they are not here for the materia. They can't risk giving themselves away in front of Cyrus.
XX
"How are we going to convince Cyrus to come with us at some point? What if she's going to kill us with her Phoenix powers? That would ruin everything for Elfe-" Dakota was cut off when Quinn placed his finger over his lips to silence her. They are hiding behind the building where no one would hear or see them.
"We can't do a thing now. Maybe for a while, we need to act like we should be friends with her along with Viola and Jay." Quinn suggested. "If we see more action from Cyrus, then we could bring her into our base."
Cyrus walked out of the building with her hood on and following her are Jay and Viola. Quinn and Dakota nod at each other and began to follow them. Jay was asking Cyrus so many questions about Sephiroth and what was it like to be part of Shinra. Cyrus frowned at the last part.
"Actually...I was raised there. Me and Sephiroth are." She said. "I was the one who shouldn't be outside. But...I wanted to see the world like my brother has. People keep telling me that I am not ready for the world. The world is not ready for me."
"What do you mean by that? They keep you indoors for years?" Jay wondered. Cyrus nodded.
"Any reason?" Viola asked. Cyrus is silent for a moment. She crossed her arms.
"I can't tell you." She told them. "Classified."
"Like that Turk told us." Viola scoffed. Cyrus continued walking as the others followed her. "We understand if it is. If you can't tell us, we won't ask you any more questions."
"Hey! What do you say we go to Sector 6? Wall Market is harmless during daylights." Jay suggested. "Shinra can't get to Cyrus there."
"Er, isn't that also a place where people get-" Viola started.
"That's at Honeybee Inn." Jay corrected. Cyrus couldn't help but to smirk. She has heard of Honeybee Inn from mostly men from the Shinra Building. But Wall Market is a place where people aren't shy for getting in bed with the ladies or men. Cyrus wouldn't go there at night anyway. Since it's daylight, it wouldn't hurt anybody. "What do you say, Cyrus? Wanna join?" Jay asked.
"We're...not gonna do...vulgar things, are we?" Quinn asked cautiously.
"Gods no!" Viola yelled.
"No. They got places to eat and stuff." Jay said.
"I got some time. Let's go." Cyrus told them.
Wall Market isn't so crowded at this time. Thank Gaia the Shinra troopers never step foot into it since the place itself is lawless. Cyrus looked around and see many shops and inns. She now wonders what the place would look at night. The lights will be on. It would look beautiful. Cyrus noticed a gym and a few restaurants. But there is a big mansion located at the end of Wall Market. Cyrus guessed it is where Corneo lives. She doesn't know much about him, but she hears rumors that he has so many brides.
'No way in hell I'll be one of them.' Cyrus thought to herself. Jay was telling the others of where they should eat, but Cyrus is distracted by something else. She turned her head to see someone heading to the corner. She started to follow someone and there is Hiedra! He is heading inside the club, the Honeybee Inn. Cyrus hid behind the wall to watch him approach the man who should be the security of the place.
"Cyrus? What're you doing?" Viola asked. Cyrus silenced her new friends and pointed over at Hiedra. "What the hell?"
"What is he doing here?" Jay wondered.
"Who is that?" Dakota asked. Cyrus told them to be quiet again. Hiedra brought the man's chin down and let out a purple breath. The man pulled away, coughing. The security blinked a few times and looked over at Hiedra. He gave him a nod and moved out of the way. Hiedra smirked and walked inside the Honeybee Inn. "What witchcraft is that?" Dakota asked.
"He's a warlock." Cyrus said. "What is he up to?"
"We're not going in there. Are we?" Quinn asked. Cyrus made a look and walked over to the man who crossed his arms at her.
"I need to speak with Hiedra." She said.
"Sorry. We are closed until sundown." The man told her. "And this place is not for young girls like you. Move along." Cyrus grunted. She's gonna be 18 in a month and she doesn't have a membership card. No minors can enter. Only 21 and older. Cyrus returned to the group and shook her head.
"Off limits for me." She said. "How old are you guys if I may ask?"
"Jay and I are over 21." Viola replied.
"20." Quinn quietly said.
"19." Dakota said.
"Viola and I could get in. But...we don't have memberships." Jay said with a shrug. "Plus, that place is closed until things get wild at night."
"You think Hiedra is meeting with someone in there?" Viola wondered.
"Or needs to 'relax' if you catch my drift." Quinn joked. No one is amused.
"I would tell someone about this, but they will know I snuck out." Cyrus said. "I hate to say this, but there is nothing else I could do now. I can't get in either way."
"Wait a minute!" Viola gasped. "Jay, didn't you say something that a friend yours worked at Honeybee Inn?"
"...Yes! How could I forget?! But wasn't sure if he still does-"
"Wait, 'he'?" Cyrus wondered, raising her brow. Jay brought out his phone to call a friend.
Hiedra walked inside the luxury room of the inn to see Fuhito. After the door closes, Hiedra sat on one of the chairs as Fuhito helped himself with some wine.
"Trouble coming in?" Fuhito asked, swirling his glass.
"Not at all. So, what do you want with me now?" Hiedra asked. "If this is about me breaking into the Shinra Building-"
"That was our job to take down the president!" Fuhito said. "The deal is to take the damn materia from them! And what did you do? Mess around with the Turks and the SOLDIERs!" Hiedra chuckled.
"I told you before, my friend. I don't work for anyone. But your price is promising. As long as the son of Shinra pays you well. But if I don't get my half..." Hiedra snarled at Fuhito, showing his fangs and fork tongue. The man didn't even flinch. Fuhito was well aware of Hiedra's threats.
"I am the man of my word, Hiedra. Shinra is the one who couldn't be trusted. That is one of the reasons why you left." Fuhito said. "You chose your path instead of theirs. Shinra will face their wrath. But let me remind you again about Sephiroth-"
"Ugh, don't remind me. But his little sister is fun to play with." Hiedra said with a smirk.
"The Phoenix girl?"
"Yes. What power she was holding. She is immune to my power of toxic, except for the hallucination power."
"We have plans for her. We want her alive and well and brought to our base." Fuhito told him. "That is not your job either. Do what you must but let us handle the president and the girl. Speaking of materia, where is it?" Hiedra brought out a few of them. Fuhito examines them. "Good. You may go now."
"Oh, before I do..." Hiedra turned to the Honeygirl who walked in. "I might wanna stick around a while longer. You can go." Fuhito huffed and hurried out of the room and closed the door. Hiedra smirked at the Honeygirl who looks afraid. She was called in for a private show for someone before Honeybee Inn opens tonight. Hiedra blows out his dark pink breath at her. She gasps and starts to cough. "Don't be afraid. It won't kill you. You will love my toxic." Hiedra said to her, bringing his hand up to her cheek, slightly brushing his finger ring against her skin. The Honeygirl looked into his emerald eyes with her brown ones. She started to relax as Hiedra gave her a smile.
"You want me to investigate Honeybee Inn tonight?" A man asked while he was sharpening his knife outside his apartment while Jay and the others watched. He has blonde hair and brown eyes. He is a good-looking young man. Maybe both men and women are interested in him at the inn. "I'm not working tonight."
"Just go in to make extra gil!" Jay said. "C'mon, Wyatt, this warlock is dangerous, and he is up to something."
"How would you know if he will be there tonight?" Wyatt asked.
"Ask anybody if they have seen him and how often he comes around." Viola told him. Wyatt sighed a bit. He looked at his friends. Cyrus crossed her arms.
"Alright. I'll do this for your new friend. This task better not cost me my job! I need to live!" Wyatt said.
"Stay in touch." Cyrus spoke. "Need my number?" She got out her phone. They exchange numbers. Soon after, Cyrus's phone rang. It was Tseng. She moved away from the others and answered. "Hello?"
"Any reason why you snuck out again? Where are you?" Tseng asked on the line.
"Tseng, it's a long story. But Hiedra went in the Honeybee Inn." Cyrus explained. "He's up to something-"
"You didn't go in, did you?"
"I couldn't go in. Under 21."
"Cyrus, you really shouldn't be outside the building. Especially if Hiedra is snooping around Midgar. Since you are in Wall Market, I'll come to get you."
"No. I'll come back. Thanks anyway..." Cyrus sighed and hung up.
"Trouble?" Quinn asked.
"Not really. But I have to go back to the building. Give me updates." Cyrus walked away. Good thing it was only Tseng who called her. If it was her brother instead, she will be in for it. A sound is coming from her phone. A text from Tseng. Cyrus read it and blinked.
'Shinra is holding a charity ball next month. Maybe it's time you be part of it.' It said. Cyrus remembered the company has thrown those parties and she never got to go. Is Tseng inviting her? But what is Cyrus gonna wear? Will Sephiroth be okay with her going? That really depends. It wouldn't hurt to go.