After Dark
A Durarara story.
Summary: Shinra Kishitani is missing, and the one information broker who would know his whereabouts is nowhere to be seen. Being the only person truly capable of saving the underground doctor, Celty Sturluson has to make a choice: she can either save Shinra from his kidnappers, or escape Ikebukuro, finally reunited with her head. Either way, their lives will forever be altered by the events that occur after dark.
Warning: Rated T for alcohol and drug references, torture, gangs, violence, and language. There are minor spoilers to the anime. Minor Celty x Shinra.
Chapter One: Stolen
The city skies are a dark contrast, the bright flashing lights adding depth to the stormy sky. When night had rolled in, ash speckled clouds had followed in suit, forming an intricate blanket over the moon and stars. It is the telltale sign of rain, yet not a single drop patters the citizens leisurely strolling the streets, either unfazed or unaware of the change in the weather. It is quite a dreary night, the faces of the clouds only adding to the depressing atmosphere many of the walkers are not very fond of. Citizens filter in and out of shops, for various purposes, as if they are trying to escape the rain that has yet to come.
The weather sucks up the warmth, leading many people to feverishly pull their jackets away from the bitter cold's grasp. The air permeates with the scent of the illusive rain, something that over powers the cigarette smoke filtering through the mouth of Shizuo Heiwajima. He doesn't know why he is walking the streets of Ikebukuro after dark, nor does he care. He marks it as his instinct, a sixth sense he's received from being in the city for so long. It never seems to faze him to see chaos ensue at the strangest times, usually in part to the damn flea.
Just thinking about him makes his blood boil. He rips the cigarette from his mouth, crushing it with his shoe the moment it hits the sidewalk. The smoke circulates in his lungs for a few heartbeats before he exhales, releasing the tension that coil his shoulders. He shouldn't be so pissed off with the man. He hasn't seen him for little over a month after all.
Good riddance. He smirks, picking up the pace of his stroll when the first droplets manage to escape from their carriers. Shizuo doesn't mind the rain; he just hates the distinctive smell that lingers afterwards, and the fact that it wrinkles his suit.
As he speed walks to his apartment, Shizuo can't help but admire the lightshow Ikebukuro is. Odd and unique colors clash against one another like a battle to win over the darkness. Every street is extensively lit up by the signs advertising odds and ends people think they require. It wasn't too bright, just soft enough for it to be tolerable. That could also be attributed to the fact that he's wearing sunglasses, but he doesn't really care. It's nice. That's the only point to looking at the stupid strings of lights in the first place. It is calm and peaceful, with the rain showering the busy city like bitter tears from a weeping angel.
It's even better, he thinks smugly, without Izaya.
He just hates it when Izaya Orihara ruins the beauty of it all; manipulating the world like it is a stage to one of his stupid plays.
God… He just… pisses him off so much, just for pleasure. It is sick. Sicker than Russian sushi without fish.
The rainwater makes his hair stick to the back of his neck, an annoying little tick that bugs Shizuo. He runs his fingers through his hair, disconnecting the lumpy strands in an attempt to remedy this. The weather is churning into a full out storm. He knows he can't make it back to his apartment without wading through a metaphorical river. He would end up ruining his shoes. It would be a waste, and he doesn't have the money to buy new ones.
Scoping out the streets, he's pleased to see Shinra's place is close. He could have a good chat with Celty until the storm blows over. That'll relax him a bit. As long as he wasn't there…
Shizuo Heiwajima enters the complex, heading up to the floor owned by the underground doctor. Since it is so late, neither of them could be working. Someone has to be home. When he steps out the elevator and into the hallway, a sudden sense of foreboding washes over him. He is never caught off guard when it comes to Ikebukuro's infamous antics, but this is something he honestly could not be prepared for.
The door to Shinra's apartment is splintered, nearly clinging to the doorframe by its hinges. Deep gashes wound it, scrapping the paint off to form three distinctive cuts right down the middle.
"Shit…" Shizuo mumbles, gently lifting the door.
By gently, he really just rips it off the doorway, leaning it against the wall so he could walk in.
Shinra's keys are idly waiting on a nearby table, as if the man himself just got home. His shoes are neatly put away as well, suggesting the same. What pisses Shizuo off is while the door looked ready for the chop shop, everything in the house is spotless and untouched. What the hell is going on?
"Hey… Celty? You home?" Shizuo takes a few steps in, casting a glance around for any life, "Shinra?"
The rain batters the windows ominously, like a death march rumbling the panes. The air strangely smells of incense, as if someone is covering something up. It could be that antibiotic sterile shit doctors are known to use. Leave it to Shinra to make his house smell like a damn hospital…
"Celty? Shinra?" Shizuo crosses the threshold, finding not a single thing out of place. Shinra has to be home. You don't just walk out barefooted and keyless.
The Ikebukuro monster's eyes focus on a discolored section of the floor. Bending down, he plucks it off the ground, noticing that it is Shinra's glasses, slightly cracked, and reflecting a broken image of Shizuo's face. He doesn't want to jump to conclusions, but the only assumption he can make is someone broke in, not to rob the owner, but to kidnap him instead. Who the hell would want an underground doctor anyway?
Searching around a bit, Shizuo locates the doctor's phone. He flips it opens, only to find a phone number glaring at him. It seems like that either Shinra, or the kidnappers for that matter, tried to call someone. Time to find out whom that someone is.
Pressing the call button, Shizuo shifts the cellphone to his ear. While the ringing dully persists in the background, he rolls the frames of his glasses between his fingers, really questioning what has happened to Shinra Kishitani.
Much to Shizuo's utter annoyance, the call is directed to voice mail, but what pisses him off even more is whose voice mail it was.
"Hello, I'm sorry I can't come to the phone. I'm too busy enjoying the show. Try again later and I might pick up."
Izaya.
Shizuo nearly crushes the cellphone in his hands. That flea! Did he have something to do with this?
He always does. Shizuo growls inwardly, trying not to wreak havoc on the house the kidnappers so precariously tried to preserve. Shizuo really did not want to confront Izaya, but if he has somehow involved himself in the kidnapping of his former friend, he sure as hell wanted to be the person to bust his face in.
Before he can take the pleasure of busting the fleas head open though, there is a matter of business he has to do first. He has to make sure Celty is aware.
He knows where he can find her.
Shizuo Heiwajima waits on the streets of Ikebukuro in the pelting rain, scanning the roads for the streak of black that is Celty Sturluson. Sure enough, as he has predicted, she comes riding through, her motorcycle buzzing underneath her hands. She is unfazed by the precipitation brutally assaulting her helmet. He manages to flag her down, since the streets are empty and he is the only idiot still out in the rain. He itches for another cigarette, but he ignore the impulse as Celty pulls over, guiding her cycle into the shelter of nearby trees. She speaks first, pulling out her PDA to communicate a hello.
"Hey." Shizuo grits his teeth. He is freezing now; finally succumbing to the sudden change of weather, "Off on an assignment?"
She shakes her head no.
"Looking for you head then?"
She responds with a nod.
"You been home lately?"
Her fingers fly across the keyboard, presenting him a message in less than a second.
'No. I haven't been since this morning,' She clears the text once he's read it, 'Why?'
"I went by to get out of this shitty weather. Let's just say you need to buy a new door and…" He holds up the glasses, feeling odd for him to be holding them. They should be positioned on the doctor's face, not limply dangling from his fingers.
Celty's only response is, 'What happened.'
"Someone kidnapped him and I bet the flea has something to do with it."
She lowers her head.
"What's up?"
'We can't go see Izaya.'
"Why not? Whether or not he's behind it, he's a fucking information broker. He could tell us where Shinra is."
'You don't understand.'
"What do I not understand?" Celty straddles her motorcycle, managing to type one last message before vanishing into the night like a shadow, the black streak of her form cutting across the lights of Ikebukuro.
'I know where my head is.'
Shizuo tilts his head back, feeling the droplets numbing his face with each icy bite that drips onto his skin.
He regrets not smoking a cigarette sooner.
Shinra's missing and there's no way in hell I'm going to that flea by myself.
Walking in the opposite direction Celty took off in, he wonders what has become of Shinra, whether he's alive or not. Shinra is a friend but not a close one, considering he did introduce Shizuo to Izaya in the first place. He sighs, feeling his shirt plaster against his skin. So much for trying to save it. Is there anything he could do? He wasn't exactly all over the idea of saving the annoying bastard himself. After all, all he did was pester Shizuo for a possible dissection. He knows his heart is in a right place, but he isn't exactly on his good side at the moment. Shizuo wasn't a likely candidate to play the role of the knight in shining armor. Celty is more apt to that roll. But if she's found her head somewhere, she would stop at nothing to get it, even if that meant ignoring Shinra's kidnapping in her desperate search to find it.
Stuffing Shinra's cellphone and eyewear into his pocket, Shizuo Heiwajima continues his stroll wondering: if not Celty, then who would save Shinra?
How do you like it? Next chapter will be longer. PM me if you would like to assist with this story!
-Soul Spirit-