Disclaimer: I own nothing except my own characters.
A/N: Hey y'all forewarning this is my first time writing a Mystic Messenger fanfic, so characters may be a bit OOC so sorry in advance!
MC walked back into the apartment dragging her bag full of books behind her. Today was just not a good day for her. First, she overslept after answering back some emails from guests while also trying to keep up with the group chat the night before. Then, she got called out by the professor to answer a complicated question (which she knew), but the explanation was still long and her throat was almost hoarse by the time she was done. After that she fell asleep during lunch, so she didn't eat breakfast or lunch today. She then spent the rest of her classes trying to keep up with everything on an empty stomach. She also had to stay a few extra hours at school to gather the materials needed for her homework.
Yes, today was most definitely not her day.
When she closed the door, she practically collapsed into a chair and her head dropped onto the table ready to go to sleep without eating anything or doing homework. Unfortunately, fate had a different plan for her.
Seven was working on something when a notification went off saying that someone was in the apartment. He saw who was on the CCTV and wondered, What happened to her? She looks like she's about to faint any minute now!
Seven saw how she dragged herself to a chair and almost pass out. He considered calling her, but his phone went off with a group chat notification. He shrugged and logged in.
Yoosung , Jaehee Kang, ZEN, Jumin Han
[707 has entered the chatroom]
707: Hello~
ZEN: Hey
Yoosung : Hiya~
Jaehee Kang: Hello
ZEN: You're not usually on around this time
Yoosung : Yeah I'd figure that you'd still be working
Jumin Han: Has something happened?
707: Yes! Something terrible has happened!
ZEN: ...
Yoosung : …
Jaehee Kang: Are you going to tell us?;;
Jumin Han: Get on with it
707: Just wait a second
707: ...3
707: ...2
707: ...1
[MC has entered the chatroom]
MC: Hey
707: Hello~
Yoosung : How did you do that
707: Do what?
MC: What did Seven do?
707: I didn't do anything~
ZEN: anyways, MC are you alright?
MC: I'm fine why? Did something happen?
Jaehee Kang: From what I can understand, Luciel seems to think that something has happened to you
MC: don't worry I'm fine!
707: dragging yourself through a door and collapsing in a chair is not my definition of 'fine'
ZEN: MC did something happen?
MC sighed, leave it to Seven to know that today was a horrible day for her. She texted back still sitting in the chair.
MC: Today was just an off day for me.
Yoosung : What happened?
MC: Nothing that I can't handle
Jaehee Kang: Have you eaten yet?
Again MC sighed, as much as she wanted to tell them yes, she didn't want to lie to her new friends. She just started to get them to trust her, she didn't want to lose that trust.
MC: No I didn't have time to eat anything
ZEN: *shocked emote* You didn't anything at all today?!
707: Tsk tsk that's not good for your health MC
Yoosung : You have to eat to stay healthy!
Jumin Han: It would not do for you to get sick before the party
MC: I've just been really stressed lately
Yoosung : You should play LOLOL that usually relaxes me
ZEN: That game is your answer for everything
Jaehee Kang: You should listen to some music to relax yourself
Jaehee Kang: I recommend Zen's music
ZEN: It always relaxes me whenever I look in the mirror~
ZEN has sent a picture
Jaehee Kang: *glasses taken off and on emote*
Jaehee Kang: Such a nice picture~
Seven was starting to get annoyed at everyone. They are only suggesting what they would do not what she should do. The only ways to destress yourself is to either get a cat or remove the source of the problem.
707: Why you skip breakfast and lunch anyway?
Seven looked back to the monitor to see how she would react. If there is one thing he learned while doing field missions, it that body language can easily contradict words.
MC: I overslept this morning and when I was at school I fell asleep during lunch.
MC bit her lip. It wasn't technically a lie, but not the whole truth either. Hopefully they won't ask why she overslept today. She didn't want to tell them that it was because of the emails from guests or else they would probably think that she couldn't handle it.
Unfortunately for her, Seven knew that there had to be a reason to why she overslept, she just didn't want to let anyone know for some reason.
Yoosung : Coffee always helps to wake me up in the morning!
Jaehee Kang: Coffee should solve your tiredness in the morning
ZEN: It's not good to go overboard on the caffeine though.
MC: I'm not that big of a coffee drinker, but I'll try it tomorrow morning
Jaehee Kang: For now, you should get some dinner to eat considering you haven't eaten all day
ZEN: I'm about to go eat with the director right now
ZEN: talk to you later
Yoosung : See ya!
Jaehee Kang: Goodbye
[ZEN has left the chatroom]
Jaehee Kang: I should go too I have paperwork to do
Jumin Han: I should go feed Elizabeth the 3rd
MC: Good luck Jaehee!
707: Say hi to Elly for me~
Jaehee Kang: Thank you MC remember to eat
Jumin Han: Her name is Elizabeth the 3rd
[Jaehee Kang has left the chatroom]
[Jumin Han has left the chatroom]
Yoosung : I should get going too LOLOL is calling to me and I need to answer it
[Yoosung has left the chatroom]
MC: Seven do you still have work?
707: What makes you think that~
MC: The fact that you don't log on as much because you always have work
707: Touché
707: As a matter of fact, I came here to procrastinate and to see if you were okay
MC smiled at that. She didn't want to admit it, but she was starting to feel more than friendship with the hacker. However, she was just gonna keep that little fact to herself. It was just a crush that was bound to go away, or at least that's what she thought.
MC: Thanks for worrying about me, but you shouldn't let me stop you from working.
707: Awww~ but working is soooo boring
Seven saw in the camera how MC laughed at his texts. It felt nice that he could have that reaction from her. But, something was still bothering her and he was going to find out.
MC: It may be boring but where else are you going to get money to buy more cars
707: Okay ya got me there
707: Talk to you later~
[707 has left the chatroom]
MC logged off as soon as Seven went off and she started to head towards her bed without eating anything. She was simply too tired to eat. Maybe morning coffee won't be so bad tomorrow.
About 5 minutes later her phone went off and it displayed a picture of a certain redhead that was suppose to be working. She smiled and picked up.
"Seven, I thought you were suppose to be working."
Seven grinned when she picked up. It was amazing how she could do that to him just by talking.
"I said I would talk to you later and technically it's later~"
MC laughed, "Touché. So what's up?"
"I should be asking you that what happened that made you oversleep?"
MC sighed. "You won't give it up until you know right?"
"Bingo!"
"Fine. I guess it was a mixture of answering emails, studying and doing homework, while paying attention to what is going on in the group."
Seven wasn't convinced. "If that's the case then how have you done it for almost a week and only today have the effects?"
MC couldn't think of a good excuse, "There were...more emails?"
"Nice try, but it will take a lot more than that to mislead the great Seven Zero Seven!"
"Haha alright. My guess would probably be it's because my parents are in town and they want to see me."
Seven was confused, "What's so bad about that?"
"Nothing's bad about it unless you count the fact that I haven't seen them in years."
That got Seven's attention. "What happened?"
"A small argument between my parents and me."
"I've never heard of a small argument resulting in that before."
"There was nothing I could do. It was mainly my parents against my brother and sister."
Seven was surprised, "You have a brother and sister?"
"Yep, but let's keep that between us okay?"
Seven didn't know what to think or feel, concern because his friend's parents were in town, shock because he didn't know why he didn't see anything about her brother and sister when he did a background check on her, confusion because it didn't seem she was surprised that he didn't know that, or curiosity because he wanted to see what other secrets he didn't know about her.
"Uhh sure...your secrets safe with me."
"Thanks."
"Are you close with you siblings?"
On the camera he saw her smile fondly at the mention of her brother and sister. It made him happy seeing her smile like that. It made him think of his own family, but before his thoughts could continue, MC answered back.
"Yes, they're the best in the world."
"Are you still in contact with them?"
MC hesitated. She wanted to protect her brother and sister until she could see them again.
"To some degree, yes."
"Can you tell me about them?"
"Depends."
"On what?"
"If you're going to try to find them to see if they're dangerous or not. Seeing how that was the case for me."
Seven winced, he didn't even think about that...well maybe at the back of his mind he was thinking of doing that.
"Alright, what would you say if I said I was gonna do a background check?"
"Then that would give me all the more reason to trust you if you're telling me the truth."
"And if I said I wasn't?"
"Then you won't get any names from me, only distant memories."
"When was the last time you've seen them?"
"Answer my first question and then I'll answer yours."
"...Okay...I won't search for them."
MC looked directly into the camera unaware that she was looking directly at Seven, "Promise?"
Seven said with an even voice, "Promise."
"I haven't seen them since I started university."
"Are you still in contact with them?"
"Not unless you count getting the occasional letter in the mail during the holidays and my birthday...but since they don't know where I live now they can't exactly send me anything. I really miss them sometimes."
Seven saw how sad she looked and wished that he could do something to bring back the smile that lit up his day. Since he promised that he wouldn't find them, he couldn't do anything. All he could do was talk to her.
"What are they like?"
MC made sure not to name any specifics. "My brother's really overprotective when it comes to me and my sister, especially when we started taking self-defense classes and when school started. He teased my sister and me a lot. He loved adventures whether it was outside or in games. We played together a lot."
"And your sister?"
MC giggled, "She...she's really unique. She never backed down from any challenge that was thrown at her. She always argued with my brother saying that she could defend herself. She may have loved to go outside, but most of the time when she was outside, she would read books. She used to read to me when I was really young."
"You must really love them."
"Yeah...I don't know what I would be like without them. I would probably be a completely different person."
"Did they have that big of an effect on you?"
"Yeah. They did."
Without thinking, Seven let slip, "It's nice seeing you smile more."
MC blushed. "Talking about my favorite family members tends to make me happy."
"What about your parents?"
Immediately Seven regretted his question when he saw how MC froze, her smile gone from her face. He tried to remedy the situation.
"You don't have to talk about them if you don't want to!"
MC almost didn't respond and Seven thought that his mess up could've cost him. He didn't realize he was holding his breath until he let it out after hearing her voice again.
"As much as I want to vent to someone, now is not the time."
Seven sighed, at least she didn't hate him. "Okay."
"Maybe one day, but not today."
It was silent for a while. Seven decided to lighten up the mood. "If you ever need someone to talk to someone, just call out 'Defender of Justice Seven Zero Seven, I need you!' and there will be a 1% chance I'll call you and a 0.01% chance that I'll come to you in person just to talk."
MC laughed, "I'll keep that in mind. Thanks Seven. Have a good evening."
"707 Back into the world of darkness. BAAM~"
They both hung up at the same time. Thoughts going through their head.
Seven stood up from his chair to find some Honey Buddha Chips and Phd Pepper. Thoughts were going through his head a mile a minute. What happened with her parents? Where are her brother and sister? Will she be okay?, but one thought stuck out the most Is she safe?
Meanwhile, MC went to fix herself something to eat before going to bed. Her body was on autopilot while her mind was swimming with thoughts. Maybe I said too much. I really hope Seven doesn't go back on his promise, I just needed to get some stuff out of my system. I should check the mailbox at the old place. Just to see if they sent me anything.
Before she knew it, she finished her food, answered her emails, and was getting ready for bed. She spent a little more time reading group chats and talking to the others before she went back to sleep grateful that she didn't have many classes tomorrow.
~The Next Day~
MC woke up to the sound of her phone going off. She was wondering why it was going off since Yoosung probably pulled an all-nighter to play games, Zen had a meeting with a director, Seven was most likely working, and Jumin and Jaehee had an early morning meeting. So who was calling her? She looked at her phone and almost dropped it in shock. She quickly answered the call. She wouldn't get her hopes up, but there's only one way to find out.
"Hello?"
A voice responded, "Hello. Do you know me?"
"Who is this?"
Two voices sounded out one after the other, "If the sun's fire shouts during the night, the earth will recoil back in fright."
MC gasped, "When the waves crash in despair, happiness cannot be felt through the air."
A feminine voice rang out, "It's been awhile since we've heard your voice, Raziel."
"Jophiel, Michael! Is it really you?"
Another voice, this one more masculine, "We figured that you wouldn't recognize our voices, it's been years after all."
"Are you guys okay? Did something happen? What's going on?"
"Calm down! We're fine! The question is are you okay? We tried getting a hold of you, but you don't seem to answer letters anymore."
"Ah! Sorry, it's just that I moved places about a week ago and I haven't checked the mail at the old place since. I was planning to go later today anyways."
"Moved? What happened?"
"It's a long story. One that should be told in person….When are you guys coming back?"
MC heard a sigh from the other end. She really wanted to see them again, especially now that her parents wanted to see her again. She was pulled from her thoughts when she heard them reply.
"We don't know...hopefully soon. How much longer can you wait?"
Before she could stop herself she blurted, "My parents are in town and want to meet me. I don't know what to do."
There was silence over the phone for a while. After a several seconds had passed, which felt like minutes to MC, the female voice quietly asked, almost in a whisper, "Why? How long has it been since they tried to talk to you again? How many times have they actually cared? Why do they want to see you?"
Her voice grew louder with each sentence. MC wished that she could calm her down. Instead the other voice beat her to it.
"Calm down! No matter what happens we can't do anything! We may have helped her when we were with her, but that was in person. We can't do anything right now."
The person sighed, "Sorry that we can't be there for you….Are you going to meet them?"
MC took awhile to answer. "I have no choice. If I don't see them or if they don't see me then they'll try to find me again. Or even worse, try to find you."
"...All we can say now is good luck."
The female voice answered back, now that she was calm again, "See you 't forget to check you mail."
MC sadly nodded even though they couldn't see, "Good luck to you guys too. Cheer up we'll see each other soon!"
MC didn't know it, but her comment made Jophiel and Michael smile again.
"Bye, Raziel."
"See ya later."
"I hope we will see each other at in someday. Jophiel, Michael...take care."
They all hung up the phone. Each of them with a new resolve in their minds and hearts. They were determined to see each other again.
MC continued her day like normal. Tomorrow she would meet with her parents for lunch. She really wasn't looking forward to it. She shook her head, No bad thoughts today. Save those for tomorrow. Now I just have to pick up some mail.
After school she walked back to her old apartment. It hasn't changed since she left. The owner knew her straight away and walked towards her.
The owner was a tall woman with black shoulder length hair. Pale blue eyes stared back into her own amber eyes. The woman was in a dark green t-shirt and blue jeans. Her white jacket had an assortment of pins near the collar.
"MC, where have you been?"
MC smiled, "It's a long story. The shorter version is that I'll be staying at a friend's place for a while and I came back here to get any mail that I have."
The woman looked skeptical of her story, but then she shrugged her shoulders, "Alright then. C'mon I'll help you get all you mail and packages."
"P-packages too?!"
"Yep there's only two so don't worry."
The two went to the back of the complex and found a box marked 'MC' in black sharpie. There may have been only to packages, but there was a lot of mail. MC sighed and thanked the owner. She took the box and walked out again towards her new place. Before she left she made sure to wrap the box in paper to cover her name. She had to be careful since she didn't have a car. Her name was something that was not meant for strangers to know. It was bad enough with the 'Unknown' situation.
By the time she got back to the apartment, it was past lunch she walked through the door, she set her box down and walked towards the bathroom to shower and change into more comfortable clothes.
She first took out the two packages and planned to sort out the mail later.
They were both wrapped in colorful paper. The first one had a card taped to it. She opened the card to see the words 'Happy Birthday Raziel' across the paper. That's right, she thought, my birthday passed a little while ago. They didn't know that I moved.
She opened the package. She was surprised, inside it held a new laptop. This is definitely not from mom and dad. She smiled there were only two people who called her Raziel. It's been so long that she almost forgot the name.
Before she opened the other package, she turned on her laptop to set everything up. She switched her attention over to the other present. This one was much smaller than the other one. She unwrapped it. This one didn't come with a card, but considering the wrapping paper was exactly the same, the card was for both of them. She opened the box and this one held a few things to go with the laptop like a wireless mouse, headphones, etc. The bottom of the package held a new phone. She didn't recognize the model, so it either just came out, or it wasn't out to the public yet. If she knew the gifters well, as she did, it was most likely the latter.
The laptop finally finished auto setting up. She moved over to the laptop, surprised to see that a picture on the lockscreen was already set up and a password was already set. The lock screen picture was a halo over two angel wings. MC took a moment and tried 3 different passwords until the hint came up.
Password Hint: Did you forget our colors already?
MC finally understood what the password was. There was a reason on why they didn't call each other by their real names. Other people could listen in on their conversation and the names were just another level of security. They decided to use different names that could tell them everything. Raziel, Jophiel, and Michael are three of God's seven archangels. Raziel is the angel of spiritual insight, Jophiel is the angel of patience, wisdom, and illumination, and Michael is the angle of courage, strength and protection. They each have their own colors as well as crystals.
She entered in the password, only to find that there were more passwords to enter the laptop. Four more passwords later and she was finally in. The screen now displayed a picture of MC and her brother and sister the last time they saw each other. They had spent the whole day together.
Before she did anything else, she also turned on her phone. The phone didn't take as long to turn on as the laptop did. Once again there was already a picture set up on the lockscreen and a passcode was already set.
This time she knew the numbers to the lock. When she got into the phone, just like the laptop, the home screen had a picture set, but instead of a picture, there was a message.
Use the drive on the laptop
Enter in the password
Follow the instructions
Talk to us as soon as you can
MC took her laptop and phone to the bed and sat with her back to the wall. She knew about the cameras in the apartment. She didn't want Seven seeing anything he shouldn't. Knowing her brother, he would make sure that the laptop and phone would be protected from the best hackers. Everything was encrypted and the firewalls were impossible to pass. Not even viruses could get into them. That meant not even someone better than Seven could get in the system. The system was also designed to alert the owner who was trying to get into the system, what they were trying to get to, and find where they were at. The system would give them a warning or two and if they continued then the system would erase the information they were trying to get to. However, before the system would delete, the information would be saved and transferred to somewhere else that the owner had access to.
~Meanwhile with Seven~
Seven was frustrated. There was no doubt about it. He was very frustrated. He had been watching MC since she entered the apartment with the box of what seemed to be mail. He saw her smile when she opened the presents. He saw the card, but couldn't see a name all he saw was 'Happy Birthday'.
His eyes widened when he saw the laptop. That's one of the newest models that haven't come out yet! He noticed how everything was all set up and how she seemed to be struggling with the password. He was about to call her to see if he could help when she smiled at the password hint. He couldn't see what she was typing, but he could see that she needed to get by a lot of passwords. When she finally got into the laptop, he saw the background, but couldn't see it clearly. Seven sighed, This is why we need HD cameras and recorders in that apartment.
He saw her take out the phone. That hasn't been released either! Who sent her this stuff?! Judging by her reaction, she didn't mind any of this stuff. So that ruled out a stranger or a stalker sending her random gifts. The birthday card indicated that it wasn't someone she knew. It wasn't anyone in the RFA since they don't know where she used to live and they don't know the address to the apartment. That left her friends and family that aren't connected to the RFA. It couldn't be her friends, since she said that none of them knew where she lived prior to meeting the RFA. Her parents were ruled out straight away. Her siblings...there was a slight chance that it was them, but how was the only question. He could tell V about this, he should tell him, but he promised MC not to mention anything about her siblings.
He didn't know when or why, but she became important to him just like the other members...maybe even more important than the others.
He was struck out of his reverie when she started moving. She moved towards the bed. He groaned. He knew what she was doing. She was moving the laptop screen out of camera range so he couldn't see it. He couldn't blame her. Looking at the screen gave him more answers than hacking into the system. He looked to a different monitor trying to see if he could get into the laptop. Unfortunately for Seven, he didn't realize the security system that was implemented into the computer. As soon as he tried to get through the first firewall, a warning showed up.
If you try to continue to hack into this computer, the data will be erased.
The owner of the device will be alerted of your presence.
My superior security system is impossible to get through.
There's enough encryption and codes to drive the best hacker insane.
You're inferior skills are no match for me and my firewalls.
You have been warned.
Seven was confused...and insulted. The codes he used should've bypassed the AI algorithm without a problem. He looked over to the CCTV video feed and saw no indication that MC knew he was trying to get in her system. It seemed that MC was on her phone, probably in the group chat, he thought. He continued on typing the next line of code when another warning showed up.
I warned you.
If you try to get into the system, the owner will be alerted
I will erase the data you are trying to get to and probably some data on your own PC.
The owner knows that you are trying to get into her system.
You can try to bypass my security system, but it won't work.
If you continue I will tell the owner your location.
I have already given her your name.
(Whether it's your username or your real name...the world may never know)
Final warning.
Seven was about to try again when he got a text. What is it now? He unlocked his phone to see that he got a text from MC.
MC: Seven are you busy right now?
707: Not really. I was just finishing something up.
MC: I hoped that I didn't have to tell you this ;-;
707: Tell me what?
MC: I hoped that I didn't have to tell you NOT to hack into my laptop
707: …
Seven winced, busted.
707: I...didn't do anything
MC: Then why did I get an alert on my phone saying that 707 was trying to into my laptop?
Seven was surprised. He had hacked into her phone and didn't find any type of scerity notification.
707: Your phone has those kinds of alerts?!
MC: Yep...well my new phone at least
This was his chance to ask some questions.
707: what kind of phone and laptop is that anyways?
MC: i'm not sure exactly, but i know that they're not out to the public yet
707: do you know who sent them or why?
MC: Yes and because before the whole Unknown thing happened, it was my birthday
MC: The phone and the laptop were birthday presents
Seven was trying not to make it sound like an interrogation, but he wanted answers.
707: so who sent you the laptop with the rude security system?
MC: lololol that's a secret~
707: it called my skills inferior ;-;
707: don't i deserve to know who thought i God Seven was inferior
MC: hahaha you do
MC: the AI thought you were inferior
Darn it! Seven was really trying to get answers, but MC was smart and twisted his words around.
707: srsly -_-
MC: Yep, all you need to know is that the sender is not dangerous...not to us at least
707: wow you know someone other than me that's dangerous?!
MC: sometimes danger is unavoidable, that's just life
707: I guess that's true, but you can't even tell meeee?~
MC: nope~ ignorance is bliss
707: what if i don't want to be ignorant?
MC: hmm… i'm not sure
MC: live in peace while you're smart without knowing answers?
707: knowledge is power and peace must be maintained with power
MC: Too much power is a dangerous thing
707: i recall someone saying that 'sometimes danger is unavoidable'
MC: sometimes it is, but in this case it can be avoided if i don't tell you anything~
707: but it more fun if you tell meeee~
MC: that may be, but dealing with the people that i know is not always fun
Seven was seriously worrying over MC. If she knew people who were dangerous enough that it's even bad to mention them by name, then she could be in real danger. It was bad enough that she was in the RFA and is in Rika's apartment. Now she could be at an even bigger risk. He didn't care if he sounded out of character. He needed to make sure that she and everyone in the RFA were safe.
707: MC...if something bad happens to the group…
MC: Nothing bad will happen...i just need you to trust me
707: i mean no offense but that's easier said than done
MC: sigh~ i can understand that i'm asking a lot from you...a strange girl randomly enters your chat room claiming that someone named 'Unknown' led them there is asking you to give her your trust her
707: weird how you can see it from my point of view, but yeah that's pretty accurate
MC: call it what you will but all i can ask is for you to trust me...please
707: it's kinda hard to do since you just having anything that i can't hack into makes you suspicious
MC: Everybody has secrets...whether mine are good or bad...it is yet to be determined
He wanted to protect his friends, whether that included MC or not, he didn't know. Seven couldn't blame her for wanting to keep her secrets. Even he had secrets that needed to be kept secret. But, if her secrets cost i'm his friends, then he had to know.
707: I know that you mean well, but I'm just trying to protect my friends
MC: Just like you are trying to protect your friends, I'm trying to protect something too...please don't make me tell you...do it for your friends
The hacker was at a loss at what to do. On one hand he wanted to know, but on the other hand he wanted to keep his friends safe. He sighed, I can't believe I'm doing this.
707: Alright...fine
MC: thank you
707: i'm not sure what to think about you after this, but i'll drop it
MC was starting to feel bad. All she wanted was for everyone to be happy. No, that's not possible...but if Seven gets suspicious of me now, then who knows what could happen.
MC: i don't want you to think the worst of me but can I tell you one thing? Just so that if anyone asks you know what to do?
Seven was surprised, after all this she still wanted him to know something?
707: Uhh...sure
MC bit her lip. She was taking a big risk here. This move could either make her or break her. She wants to trust in Seven...in Luciel.
MC: could I call you instead? That way I could make sure that nothing will get into my phone or computer
What is she scared of?, Seven checked his computers to make sure that the call won't be tapped or bugged. After making sure it was safe, he looked over the CCTV monitor. He was surprised to see MC typing furiously on her laptop and then sigh. She took her new phone and plugged it into her laptop. She looked at her old phone and to the camera on the wall, inadvertently looking at Seven, with a mixture of worry and (what appeared to Seven) sadness.
He picked his phone back up to reply.
707: Yeah, we can do that
As soon as he sent that, his phone rang. He picked up right away when he saw the picture and name of who was calling.
"You wanted to talk?"
Over the phone he heard MC sigh. "I wanted you to know that I wished I could tell you...I really do."
"Is that all?"
"No...hang on."
He heard more furious typing and a frustrated sigh on the other end.
"Everything okay over there?"
Another sigh, "Define 'okay'."
Seven looked over at the camera monitor. She was sitting hunched over her laptop still on the bed. Her phone next to her. He saw how her fingers flew across the keyboard. Her speed could rival his speed, and that's saying something.
He was curious, "What are you doing?"
"Looking for something."
"Anything specific?"
"Just a small file that will help me with something important."
"By now I've figured that our definition of small is not exactly the same."
"Okay maybe a not-so-small program that will reinforce the security on all my stuff."
"The program is already secure enough...and rude enough."
MC snickered, "Not the security on my whole system, just the applications on my phone and all the individual files on my computer."
Seven nearly fell out of his chair. No program could be that good. At least none of the existing programs he knew of.
He frowned, "I hate to burst your bubble, but no program is perfect and that secure."
"You're right, but that's only the existing programs. I'm making my own program, but I can't finish it without that file."
Seven sounded shocked, "How can you make a program like that!? That's impossible!"
MC smiled, "I have my ways."
Seven asked with hope, "Any chance I could see and maybe use it?"
"Maybe someday."
"You said it could protect you phone too, right? Besides notifying you and securing all the apps, what else does it do?"
"If my phone is off then the files on my computer will be locked. Any hidden files on my computer will be transferred to my phone. An override is needed to unlock everything."
"Any hacker can easily override a program, though."
"Right, but only one override will work successfully, while any other override will temporarily delete everything until the right passcode and override is entered."
Seven was impressed, it's not everyday someone develops a program that will make everything protected and secured, "Wow, you thought of everything."
"Not exactly, this system may work well, but it's not perfect."
"What do you mean?"
"Unless this can recognize DNA or be able to never be corrupted, maybe then it will be perfect."
"Why the maximum security?"
"I've always been like this. You never know who or what could tamper with your stuff. How surprised do you think I reacted when 'Unknown' texted me?"
"Did you have security on your old phone too?"
"Yep, that's why I need to make sure that this system is as flawless as possible. I don't know if he or she saw anything else in my phone, but this time i'm not taking any chances."
Seven was about to answer when a victory cry sounded out.
"I take it that you found your missing file?"
"More than that. I found the file and added an additional AI algorithm to support the already existing one."
"Will it make the original meaner or nicer?"
MC laughed, "It won't be mean, but it won't make it nicer either. Since I'm not the one who installed the AI I can't alter what has been written. All I can do is add on the existing system."
That got Seven's attention, "You didn't implement the system? Then who did?"
MC sighed, "That's what I wanted to talk to you about."
The sound of keys clacking stopped.
"What do you mean?"
"I mean that whatever happens I need you to know that if I ever go don't you dare try to find me?"
"What's going on?"
"Just promise me."
"I won't promise anything if it means I can't help you if you're in danger."
Another sigh was heard, "This is what I need you to do. Promise that you won't try to find me using my phone."
Seven felt that something was off. If any of this had any indication, she was usually secure with her words. Either she underestimated his talents or she was trying to tell him something without saying it outright. She knew that he could find her without using her phone, but he was gonna agree anyways, just to see what she was about to tell him. "Okay, fine I promise."
"Okay...listen closely. The files that I have on my laptop are worth more than anything probably more than my life."
Seven's eyes widened, more than her life? What has she gotten herself into?, "Okay."
"Before I stumbled into the RFA, I was working to find some information on my brother and sister. They had disappeared as soon as I was able to move out and take care of myself. I didn't manage to find anything on them, but I did find something related to different organizations."
"That doesn't sound all that bad."
"Yeah it doesn't, but these organizations are in the underground."
"How did you find all of that?"
"I'm...talented when it comes to computers and the like. I just happened to stumble across while I was searching."
"I would've never guessed that you knew your way around computer.."
"You can't know everything about someone in a week."
"What about eleven days?"
MC thought about it, "I dunno. Maybe, maybe not. Who knows? It really depends on how much time is spent with the person and the choices that are made."
"Hmm..."
"Anyways, if I were to ever leave to go somewhere for...work. Then my...partners will try to find me. You must make sure that it is really them if they run into you."
"How will they even find us?"
"Where do you think I learned about computers? They taught me everything."
"...Okay, so I tell them that you're away for work?"
"Yes. Nothing more and nothing less."
"How will I know who they are then?"
"They will introduce themselves as Jophiel and Michael. If they introduce themselves before they ask anything, then it's most likely them. After they introduce themselves they will ask for Raziel. Only after they say that name, can you tell them I'm away for work. My laptop will be in the apartment, please give it to them."
"Wha...Jophiel...Michael...Raziel? Why those names?"
"That's another secret~"
Seven sighed, What have I gotten myself into? "When are you leaving?"
"...that information is classified. Just trust me on this."
"Can you at least tell me whether or not any of us will be in danger?"
"As long as you only do as I tell you, nothing bad will happen to the RFA."
"I'm not happy with this, but fine."
"One more thing. Tell them that I still have all the colors."
Seven was confused, "Alright...I guess."
MC released a relieved sigh. "That's one thing out of the way...for now."
"What else is there?"
"I have to deal with my parents tomorrow."
"Is it really that bad?"
"...I wish I had the strength to run away like my siblings did. I spent years living under a roof with parents who don't know the value of blood relations."
"What?"
"Nevermind...forget I said anything. I should go and get everything ready for tomorrow."
"Wait, what do you mean?"
"Bye Luciel."
"Wait!"
Click
Damnit! Seven looked over to the monitor. MC was staring at her laptop, phone in her hand. She looked to the camera with sadness. She looked back to the laptop and put her phone down. She continued typing with speed and concentration. Seven sighed in frustration. After a while, he saw MC close her laptop and pick up her new phone. She bit her lip in contemplation and decided to call someone. This is my chance to find out what's going on.
He started typing on his laptop to try to tap into the call. After a while, he finally got in and connected it to his phone so he could listen in.
A feminine voice rang out. "-ything alright?"
"Yeah as alright as it can be anyway." That was MC, no doubt about it.
A male voice chimed in, "Cheer up, we'll try to get to you as soon as we can. We'll be there either tomorrow or the next day."
MC sighed, "I wish that it was like the old times."
There was silence for a while. The man eventually broke it, "Us too."
The woman quietly said, "We wanted to take you with us but..."
MC reassured her, "I know why and...I don't resent you for it. I used to, I thought you just left me with them. I used to resent you, but eventually I found out what really happened."
The two seemed surprised and the woman asked, "How did you find out?"
"Mom and Dad are not really good with their computer security. They thought that I couldn't get in without using the desktop, but they forgot about library computers and I still had my phone. I went into their files and found almost everything."
The man asked, "Why were you even in their files?"
"I was trying to see if I could use anything for blackmail in the future...or for when I wanted to leave the house."
"You really wanted to leave that badly?"
"...Yes, I hated it there."
After another pause, the woman changed the subject, "What have you been up to after we dropped you off at university?"
"Nothing much. Got a job, made some money, the normal stuff. I'm so close to finishing school. Thanks for signing me up for early classes by the way."
They all laughed. Meanwhile, Seven was experiencing a whirlwind of emotions. Confusion over who these people who were talking to MC were, anger at whoever hurt her at her old home, frustration at not being able to help MC, curiosity in MC's life. It never occurred to him how much he didn't know about MC. He thought that all her information was accessed the first time he hacked into her account. Apparently that was only the side of her that could be seen. Under that cover, lies a woman full of secrets that have yet to be discovered by anyone. He was so distracted that he almost missed the next part of the conversation.
MC had to choose her words very carefully. She didn't want to give away the RFA just yet. The security system wasn't just for enemy hackers, but to keep prying eyes from people close to her as well. "But, right now I'm working for a charity organization. As soon as I finish with schooling, I'll have to make a living somehow."
The man suggested, "How about working with us again? You remember? Just like old times."
The woman scoffed, "Like that time when you kept telling Raziel to get behind you and it was me that had to get her?"
MC laughed, "Maybe after some training, but if I ever get work with you guys, then it'll be in a safe and secure room."
The man laughed sheepishly, "I didn't know the room was bugged. In my defense, Jophiel didn't know either."
The woman, who Seven assumed was Jophiel, retorted, "Don't try to put that on me! I went in after you! We're just lucky that MC's system went off or else we would've been so screwed."
The man agreed, "It feels like just yesterday we were teaching you how to code. Now, you're developing your own security systems and rewriting programs."
MC joked, "You guys sound like proud parents that just had their kid graduate from school."
Again they all laughed as if nothing was wrong in the world. MC yawned, "I'm starting to get tired I'm gonna tune out for the night. Please stay safe."
The man laughed, "Don't worry! I am the epitome of carefulness. Nothing will come to harm either of us as long as I'm here!"
MC was a little unsure, "Umm...are you sure about that?"
Jophiel reassured her, "Don't worry. I'll be here to make this idiot won't kill either of us."
"Hey! I'm right here ya know!"
"I know...Raz go ahead and turn in. We're gonna talk for a little bit."
MC yawned again, "Okay good night, stay safe, don't do anything stupid."
The man responded, "Good night, sleep tight, don't let the viruses take a byte. And stop worrying, we won't do anything stupid."
Jophiel deadpanned, "I'm pretty sure she's talking about you."
"You don't know that for sure. Right Raziel?"
…
"I think she left already."
"I still think she meant you."
The man sighed, "Now that that's over, we still have one more thing to take care of."
Jophiel agreed. "The person who has been listening into this phone call, can we at least know your name?"
Seven was stunned, How did they know?
The man spoke up again, "Don't try to pretend you aren't there. We've known the whole time."
No use staying quiet now. "I'm known as 707, or just Seven."
Jophiel stated, "The error 707?"
"Which error is that?"
"Of course you wouldn't know. Since I'm the one that deals with the computer every time you break it."
Michael defended, "Well it's not my fault that a virus got leaked."
"That has yet to be proven, but I know it was you. Anyways, Seven, I know that you probably have some questions for us?"
Seven didn't have some questions, he practically made a giant list in his head while the whole conversation was going on. "Yes, I do. Who are you?"
"I assume you heard my name already, but I am known as Jophiel."
"And I am Michael."
"Are those your real names?"
Michael answered, "We have many names, but that's how people who are close to us, like MC, address us as."
"How do you know MC?"
Jophiel retorted, "We could ask you the same thing."
Seven wasn't about to expose the RFA to complete and possible dangerous strangers, "We work for the same charity organization. Now answer my question."
Michael sighed, "We are her partners, we taught her everything about computers and the like."
Jophiel added, "We were the ones who tried to save her when she was little."
"What happened?"
Jophiel's voice was laced with malice."...Her parents happened. Her mom and dad sent her to a training camp for 5 years. They wanted her to brainwash her into becoming a soldier for the group they worked with."
Michael added in with a voice full of regret, "They almost broke her...she was so close to being gone. We almost didn't save her."
Everyone was silent for a while. Both sides thinking about what was just said. Jophiel and Michael were thinking about how they found MC the day they went against their agency. Seven, on the other hand, was angry. Angry at the people who hurt her. He was saddened with the fact that MC went through so much. He wished that there was a way to go back and protect her.
Seven quietly asked, "How long?"
The two were started from their thoughts. "What?"
"How long was she suppose to stay in that place?"
"If we hadn't gotten her out, she would still be there to this day."
"Why did it take you five years until you took her away?"
"It wasn't our choice! We risked everything trying to get her back."
"Where were you guys when they took her away then?"
"...we were away."
"That answer is not good enough."
"That's all you're gonna get."
Seven decided to change the subject. "How did you guys know that I was listening in anyway?"
"She told us to be careful and she's the one who gave us the alert system. When you came into the call, we knew, but we weren't sure if she knew you were there or not."
One day I will get past her system without triggering the alarm. Then I can laugh over that stupid AI. "Who is Raziel?"
"...How much do you know about the woman in you charity group?"
"Why answer a question with a question?"
"Why question a question with a question?"
"...point taken. I know whatever she put in the first and second layer in her background information, so her name, her phone number, birthday, etc."
Michael, who had been quiet since he was thinking about the day he almost lost MC, interrupted. "You did a background check on her!?"
Jophiel wasn't concerned, "Seven don't mind him. He's an idiot."
"Hey!"
"Anyways, do you know how many different firewalls and layers are in her background?"
Seven never thought that MC would have more than 2. Two was normally the amount that everyone had. The first layer contained social media while the second layer contained more personal information. "How many does she have?"
"She created 5 different backgrounds, each with different information and six layers of firewalls."
"What?"
"She wanted to make sure that no matter what she could always escape and go somewhere else. She didn't want to be followed anywhere."
"Is her name really MC?"
"It's been so long since she's used her real name. MC is usually the name she goes by, but to us, she will always be 'Raziel'. We gave each other names that we won't forget."
"Where are you right now?"
"We are on our way to Raziel's location. We will be there in two days, then we'll get her out of your hands."
Seven froze, "...out of your hands."...they're going to take her away from m- err us. "What do you mean? We still need her for a few more days."
"I'm sure that you can find someone else to finish her job."
Not really. "Does MC know about this?"
"No, we were planning to surprise her. After years of being apart from us, she can finally come with us."
"What if...she didn't want to leave?"
"I don't see why she would want to stay with a bunch of strangers when she can go with us, the people she hasn't seen in years."
"But, what if she wanted to stay?"
"Her staying is not an option."
"Doesn't her happiness come into account at all?"
"...This is for her happiness. She has gone through so much, the least we could do is keep her with us so that we can make sure she won't be alone."
"We won't abandon her. How does she know that you won't?"
"She's known us longer! We're done with this conversation. Michael I'm leaving."
Click
Michael sighed, "Look, I'm sorry about Jophiel. She tends to have a one track mind."
"It's no problem, but you never answered my question. What if she doesn't want to leave us?"
"Then that's the choice she makes. As long as she is safe and happy then it's fine with me if she wants to stay."
"I take it that you don't trust the charity organization yet?"
"What do you think? You told us that you did a background check on her. Not to mention, you tapped into the phone call."
"Well you guys just randomly showed up and are planning to take away our friend. Not to mention, I don't even know your name and yet you seem to have the ability to be able to make security systems that won't even let me hack into it."
"How good are you at hacking?"
"The only thing that I haven't been able to get into is MC's laptop and her new phone...besides tapping into this call."
"Impressive."
"Yeah, I guess."
"Can you help me out with a favor?"
"Depends."
"It concerns MC."
"What's the favor?"
"Protect and take care of MC. I have a feeling that the life of traveling is not something MC would want. Even though she may thinks it's safer to come with us, I know her well enough that she wants to stay here."
"You're asking the wrong person to protect her. I'm the most dangerous in the group."
"That may be, but there's something special about you. I know by the way MC talks to me about her friends. She may have not mentioned you by name, but I could tell it was you she was talking about."
"She talked about us?"
"Not specifically, just personalities and how you guys treat her."
Seven was curious. "What did she say about me?"
"If I'm right about who you are, then she calls you a...guardian angel of some sorts. You're the one who watches over her, but you are still considered a close friend of hers. She says that you help others in the group. Also according to her, you are the funniest out of the group."
At this point Seven was blushing as red as his hair. He never knew that was how MC thought of him. Sure one of his names was 'Luciel', but not many people called him a guardian angel. He shouldn't be feeling this way, he would be putting her in danger to pursue these strange feelings. She was too pure for him, who was working in the world of darkness.
"Does she talk about the other members too?"
"She says that everyone has been nice to her. She's happy that she finally made real friends, albeit she's a little unsure and annoyed with every time someone asks if she had eaten yet."
"That tends to happen a lot. Does she have something against eating or something?"
"Dunno I guess something happened when they took her away. She doesn't really talk about what happened while she was there. I did some digging into where they held her, but all I could find were reports on how many people were actually there."
"How many people stuck there or how many people who worked there."
"Both. There were thousands of workers and 80% of those workers were under the same conditions as MC."
"Whoa."
"I should get going. Jophiel's gonna have my head if I don't hang up."
"Alright."
Click
Seven leaned back in his chair. He didn't know what to think anymore. He looked over to the monitor that displayed Rika's apartment. MC was peacefully sleeping on the bed, her phones on the bedside table and her laptop on the floor in front of the bedside table. She looks so serene. How could someone so sweet and cute have such a horrible past?
He stepped away from the monitor and walked to the bathroom to shower and brush his teeth. When he was done, he walked over to his bed and laid on his side. He took out his phone and checked up on what was going on in the group chat. After a while he plugged in his phone to charge it. He took off his glasses and rubbed his eyes. Hopefully tomorrow he could get MC to explain more to him, because he had a feeling that whatever happened is not in the past. Maybe tomorrow he could get a name or something out of her.
Hey guys I just started to get into Mystic Messenger and this story wouldn't get out of my head. This was originally going to be a one-shot, but it was so long I decided to change it into multiple chapters. Apologies for the long chapter though (^_^")
Until next time!
~Panda