A/N: As always, read, review and enjoy!
Disclaimer: I do not own fairy tail
Day 9
"Hey Cana, you don't look so good…" Hibiki said, stepping forward to grasp her arm in concern, a crease forming between his brows, contrasting his creaseless suit. Cana tried they usual trick of looking up through her eyelashes but this time Hibiki didn't seem to notice, his focus on the dark purple bags beneath her eyes and pasty skin.
"Is that how you speak to a lady Hibiki? If you're not careful people might start mistaking you for Bacchus." Cana said with a smirk, knowing there were few things that could get under his skin like being compared to Bacchus- Hibiki has been quoted calling Bacchus a 'drunken unmannered brute whose life is based on the satisfaction of animalistic urges'.
"You know what I meant." Hibiki replied with an irritated tone but refused to snap, gentlemen don't snap at lades. "What's happened? Jenny said something about embezzlement?" Hibiki asked, the concern plain on his face. Cana knew he was genuinely worried for her but still she wondered if he practiced his 'concerned' face in the mirror as Bacchus had once informed her. Cana took a seat next to him, leaning forward whilst never breaking eye contact, watching with satisfaction as his eyes quickly darted to her chest before meeting her gaze.
"This must stay between the two of us." She said, leaning forward just a smidge closer, causing him swallow hard before nodding assent. "An employee of mine embezzled $8450 over two months from the company's fund." Cana, watching as Hibiki's eyes widened before narrowing again as his brows knotted together. "Soon all of this will become public, we'll lose a bit of face but we should be able to recover." Cana said, glancing at her hands before staring deep into his eyes- Bacchus liked to think he was the people person but right now she knew she had Hibiki's every heartbeat wrapped around her fingers. "I have two problems, both of which I'm hoping you can help me with." She continued, waiting for him to nod. "You know how we run our business- Bacchus handles the clients- but because of complicated circumstances he can't be back for another month and there isn't anyone at our firm with enough experience to handle the clients for the period ahead, so I was hoping for a recommendation for a substitute." She asked, brows furrowed as if she was nervous and allowing the relief to wash over her face as he answered.
"Of course! Of course! I can email you a list of candidates by the end of the day." Hibiki assured her, reaching out to grasp her hands. "Even though we're competitors we've always been good to each other- I'm glad you came to me with this." Hibiki said with a smile, giving her hands a brief squeeze. Cana returned the smile- now on to the difficult part.
"The other thing is… the woman who embezzled the money… I want to help her get a good lawyer, do you have anyone you could refer me to?" she asked, getting the last part as quickly as possible. Her disdain grew as Hibiki let go of her hands and leant back in his chair, staring at her in confusion.
"You want to pay for a lawyer for the woman who stole from you?"
OOO
"So? How did it go?" Bacchus' deep drunken voice rumbled from her phone, the background noise swarmed with music and yelling and singing and something breaking.
"He said he'd help, he's sending an email tonight. I'll forward it as soon as I get it." Cana replied and Bacchus grunted his approval. Cana took a deep breath, preparing herself for the battle she knew was about to break out, hoping the park scenery would help calm her. "Look, I know this sucks but I really need your help right now. When his recommendations come through, can I call you and we can go through them together, and set up the prep together then I think I can handle it from there until you get back." Cana said, scrunching her eyes shut as she waited for his objection which didn't come, as silence began to drag on she was afraid he hadn't heard her and dreaded the idea of having to repeat her request.
"Fine, I guess it can't be helped…" Bacchus slurred, obvious unhappy but willing. "But after this no more midnight phone calls! It's bad enough having to put up with my family, but without getting any sleep?!" Bacchus snapped. Cana was so tired and relieved she nodded, forgetting that he couldn't see her gesture through the phone.
"Alright, I'll call you at 8pm my time." She said, grinning with relief.
Now all that was left to check in on the gaol bird and then she could get some glorious sleep.
OOO
Laxus stood in his corner, three hours since opening and Cana still hadn't arrived, each minute making him more anxious. From what he gathered Cana came to the bar every day unless she was severely ill, she had told him the last time she wasn't at the bar she had tripped over a phone cord at her work and was in the hospital with a concussion, and the time before that her brother threw a can of beer at her head as a joke but she didn't duck in time and chipped her front tooth, she even pulled back her lip to make sure he got a good look at the scars in her mouth. He hoped that the mess with her work wasn't so severe she'd ended up in the hospital- surely if she was able bodied, no matter the outcome, she'd find her way to the bar.
The hours slowly crawled on, he was surprised at how bored he was without Cana's antics. He remembered a couple of days ago she'd asked him to hold her drink, at first he'd told her to go back to the bar but she was adamant so he gave in and held it, and before he could object she pulled out her phone and took a photo which she then sent to Mr Clive with the caption 'drinking on the job', he knew this because she showed him his reply- 'any sane person would need a few of those to put up with you'- as she complained about how rude he was. No matter how much time went by, he couldn't help searching the crowd for her, hoping for a respite from the monotony.
Alas, the end of the night came and there was no Cana to walk home. When the final clubber left and the lights were turned on, the DJ packing up his laptop and gear, Mira and her barmaid counterpart who Laxus still hadn't found the name of, though even if he had he probably wouldn't have remembered it were cleaning down the bar and he couldn't hold in his anxious curiosity anymore.
"Hey Mira, where's Cana?" Laxus asked, but as soon as Mira's smug smirk curved her lips he regretted it, remembering why he didn't ask earlier in the night.
"I don't know, she texted me this afternoon saying she wouldn't be coming tonight, and maybe tomorrow night but she didn't say why." She replied, but it sounded suspicious- could she be hiding some kind of illness? Was she so depressed she decided to drink at home? Laxus had also heard the story of how she'd gotten her stomach pumped once and vowed to never go through it again. "I'm a little worried about her, I'm going to check in on her tonight if you want to come?" Mira asked and bright red lights began flash before his eyes- Abort! Abort!
"Nah, if you're going to check up on her then I'm sure there's nothing to be worried about." He replied quickly, hands in front of him in a defensive stance.
"It's sweet that you're worried about her-"
"That's not what I said-" Laxus tried to cut her off but she just kept talking over the top of him.
"I'm sure it would be best for you to come with me. Plus, there was this creep who said he would follow me home and murder me and I'd feel so much safer if you walked me home- and Cana and I live in the same building so it would be like hitting two birds with one stone." Mira said, beaming up at him. He was 100% sure that the threat was completely fictional but he couldn't think of a way to reject her offer without sounding like an asshole. Mira interpreted his silence as acceptance and returned to her work.
"I should be done in about half an hour, I'll meet you out the front." Mira called as she walked into the store room. Defeated, Laxus sighed as he went outside to say goodbye to his friends and before he knew it Mira was standing beside him, warm winter coat covering all previously exposed skin except her ghostly white face.
"So, how are you finding Cana patrol?" Mira asked, smiling at her own joke as she waited for a reply. Laxus considered his answer carefully before replying.
"Challenging." He said causing Mira to laugh, hand clutching at her cheek. Laxus wanted to take the spotlight off himself so he quickly parried with a question of his own.
"If you live in the same building then why don't you walk home together?" Laxus asked, actually curious himself. Mira's answer required little thought.
"Cana patrol is impossible to do when you're her friend." Mira explained. "Once we were walking home and Cana decided she wanted to keep partying and I tried to drag her home but she's crafty when she's hammered and managed to sneak into this dodgy club and I had to call a few friends of ours to track her down. It was a complete nightmare!" Mira exclaimed, hands moving quickly through the air. "We didn't end up finding her until the police called us," Mira said, getting a surprised look from Laxus. "She'd crawled into a kid's playground on the opposite side of the city to sleep the night, where she was picked up for being drunk and disorderly, god only knows how she got there." Mira said, chuckling at the memory. "She's mellowed out a lot since she started the firm but even now, being her bartender is enough of a challenge." She said, giving a dimpled smile. "But there's no one else I'd rather hang out with," she said, looking up into Laxus' eyes as if she was trying to decipher something, "do you know what I mean?" she probed. Laxus was taken aback, but thankfully they had arrived at the apartment building but Mira paused in the street.
"Where are you going?" Mira asked, trying to hide her smile by biting her lower lip. Laxus stopped in his tracks, slowly turning to face his companion.
"This isn't you're apartment building, is it?" he asked, knowing the answer before Mira shook her head with a giggle. "She even gets in the lift!" Laxus said, pointing towards the metallic doors which caused her giggle to turn into full laughter, not helping his exasperation. "Which building is it?" he asked in a monotone, trudging towards Mira who lead him to a slightly nicer building one block down.
"I just need to get changed, it'll only take a minute." She said, quickly rushing into her apartment on the second floor, door left gaping open for Laxus to follow in behind. "You can come in if you want!" Mira called from what he assumed was her bedroom. Slowly and cautiously Laxus walked in, observing everything he could in the limited light. Every non-vital surface was covered in photographs of the same reoccurring group of about 15 kids, some older, some much younger. Her apartment was sparsely clad in what was obviously thrift store furnishings, but what was the most astounding was the sheer amount of rather expensive looking clothes chucked everywhere. Before he could notice the black lace bra chucked under the lounge Mira appeared in a white singlet top, trackies and uggboots- true bogan fashion.
"Sorry about the mess, I have to decide on four outfits for my next photoshoot audition and it's turned into this big mess." Mira said, lifting her arms up in the air in a big dramatic gesture.
"Photoshoot?" Laxus asked, slightly confused.
"I'm surprised Cana didn't tell you- my day job is a model, she got me the job at the bar so I'll be able to pay rent." She said with a chuckle, waving him outside as she locked the door behind them.
"You're really a model?" Laxus asked, surprised to actually meet a model in real life.
"Yeah, but it isn't as glamourous as it sounds." Mira replied before knocking on the door directly across from her. Laxus heard some shuffling from inside.
"Hold on, someone's at the door. It's probably Mira…" He heard Cana say to someone on the other side of the door. The door opened with a creak and there she was, bags under her eyes but he barely noticed it- she wore a thin singlet with a strange purple swirl design on it and a pair of tatty black shorts, fraying at the seams, her hair was wrapped messily in a bun and it was his first time seeing her wearing crimson rimmed glasses. The lack of make-up, alcohol and general lack of clothing made him do a double take, but there she was, large brown eyes staring up at him in surprise.
"Oh shit…." Cana exclaimed, looking from Mira to Laxus, arms folded across his chest as he glared down at her and then back to Mira. "No, Mira's not naked you fucking idiot." Cana snapped at the person at the end of the line before turning around, beckoning the two of them in over her shoulder while still listening to the phone intently. "I still think McIntyre is better suited but if you really think Samuels then I'll contact her in the morning." She said, gesturing Laxus to the couch with a pointed finger. "Right, I agree." Cana said, nodding at some unknown comment. "Actually, I was thinking of putting Lisanna on Trunks, Ms Fiona really likes her and it's a pretty simple account." Cana said, Laxus noticed Mira perk up from the cups of tea she had started preparing in Cana's small kitchenette at the mention of her sister's name. "Right…" Cana said, frowning as she reached for a piece of paper to scrawl down a quick note. "Yeah, same." Cana said tiredly. "Ok, I'll call in an hour then." Cana said before pausing to listen to his response. "Yeah, see ya." Cana said, sighing as she placed her phone down on the table clad with piles of papers, booklets and her laptop which she softly closed the lid before turning to Laxus.
"Sorry about the phone call, Bacchus and I are in the middle of working out this mess and seeing as he can't come back early, we have to plan over the phone. It's a pain in the ass but as long as the work gets done…" Cana said, fingers rubbing her forehead as she spoke. With one last sigh she took a cup from Mira and sat in an arm chair opposite the couch, turning her attention to Laxus. "So what brings you to my humble abode?" Cana asked, offering a strained smile.
"Is this your apartment?" Laxus asked with mock surprise, exaggeratedly turning his head as he took the place in- it was a lot tidier than he thought it would be with chic antique furnishings that were from a combination of ages but somehow they worked harmoniously. Mira giggled into her tea, looking between the two. Cana was confused for a moment and was about to snap at him when she realised what he meant, her conversation with Bacchus had made it completely slip from her mind.
"Guess I should apologise, huh?" she asked, staring into her tea, but a smirk curved her lips before Laxus could respond. "But you would have worked it out eventually anyway." Cana said, chuckling which was soon joined by Mira's giggle.
"Yes, Cana you are a master of comedy." Laxus said sarcastically, "Once again you amaze me beyond words." He said, glaring at her through the steam of his mug. Cana shrugged him off, taking another sip.
"So why are you guys here?" she asked, waiting expectantly but as the silence dragged on Cana's eyes narrowed suspiciously. "Mira, where did you change your clothes?" she asked, grip tightening on the mug.
"At my place, obviously." Mira replied, pointing to her uggboots.
"And where was M.M. while you were… unclothed." Cana asked with a giggle, raising an eyebrow.
"M.M.?" Mira asked, not liking where the questioning was going.
"Muscle Man." Laxus said dryly, shrugging off his jacket as the heat in the small apartment became too much.
"Woah, I didn't ask for a re-enactment!" Cana said, laughing to herself despite both Laxus' and Mira's unimpressed faces. Laxus didn't want Mira to say something unnecessary so he decided to contain the damage.
"Mira asked me to walk her home because she was afraid of being attacked by a guy that was hanging around the bar tonight, and she said that seeing as you live in the same building we should check up on you." Laxus said, raising an eyebrow at Mira in challenge but she merely hid her smile and nodded into her cup. Cana was about to make a compromising comment on Mira's behalf when Laxus asked a question. "How long do you stay in the lift?" he asked, resting his now empty mug on a scenic coaster.
"What?" she asked in confusion, Mira's chuckling irritating her deeply.
"When you get in the lift in the building a block down, how long do you stay in the lift?" he clarified, waiting patiently for an answer which Cana obviously didn't want to give.
"How about we ask incriminating questions about Mira?" Cana offered, grinning for the first time that night.
"Or now that I've made sure you're ok, I can get to bed." Mira said, quickly grabbing the three empty mugs and tossing them in the sink. Laxus knew what this was, he was being ditched, but even worse, it just had to be with Cana. Sure, he'd wanted her around earlier in the night, but now that the reality was in front of him in her tatty pyjamas, all he wanted was to be far far away. He glared at Mira freely as she offered him a farewell smile.
"Well, that was a short visit." Cana said and Mira shut the door, her attention shifting to Laxus. "I hate it when she does that." Cana said, getting up to turn the small heater down a few settings.
"Does what?" Laxus asked, slumping in the couch.
"She totally just ditched us." She replied, now in the kitchen making herself another cup of tea. "Want another?" she asked, tucking a stray hair behind her ear.
"Sure.." he replied, watching silently as she rinsed their cups, boiled the water, prepared the tea. "I didn't know you wore glasses." He said, taking another look around her apartment, this time he noticed a picture that he had just seen in Mira's house.
"I only need them for reading really so I only wear them at work." Cana replied, watching as Laxus stood, and making his way to the photo he inspected it closely. "That's my family." She said, suddenly at his side, pushing a hot mug into his hand. "There's me, Mira, Kinana," she said, pointing to a smaller version of what most definitely was the other bar maid, so he finally knew her name. "and Guildarts." She said, finishing the list of people she assumed he knew, and although he didn't notice, if he looked really hard he would notice that he was also in the photo, standing beside his grandfather and his friends, but neither of them would realise this for a long time.
"You have a big family." Laxus said, slightly jealous that he only really had his grandfather.
"Yeah, nothing beats family." Cana said bitterly before retaking her seat. "Anyway, what do you want to do to pass the time? I've got another 45 minutes before I have to restart a crap-tonne of mind numbing work with one of the world's stupidest men to have ever lived." She asked, resting her feet on the small wooden coffee table in front of them.
"What makes you think I want to hang out with you when I'm not getting paid?" Laxus asked with a smirk.
"Well, Mira managed to get you over here with that obviously bullshit story, Mira could kick your ass." Cana said, raising her pointer finger to indicate one. "Two, when Mira made her terribly unsubtle exit, you didn't follow suit." She said, raising another finger. "Three, you accepted another cup of tea." She said, raising a third finger. "And four, you're still sitting here." She said, raising her last finger. Laxus shrugged her off, pulling out his phone he checked it for a message to save him but alas, nothing. He considered lying but he knew she'd see right through it and she could make his life hell if she wanted to. "Pass me your phone." She ordered, palm outstretched.
"What?" he asked, resisting the urge to hold his phone to his chest.
"You don't have my number, which is kinda stupid when you think about it. Next time you wanna check up on me, you can just text instead." She replied, launching forward to grab it but missed it.
"Who said I was worried about you?" he snapped, keeping his phone way out of reach, acting more childishly than he had in years.
"What's the matter? Got a bunch of dick pics on there you don't want me to see?" She asked tauntingly, completely ignoring his weak defence. Reluctantly he handed over the phone, watching as she typed in her number and created a contact- only later would he realise she had sent herself a line of incriminating texts from his phone that she then erased from his.
"So what now?" she asked impatiently. Laxus considered leaving for a moment but realised she was right, he liked hanging out with her, for short periods of time at least. What did he want to do with her?
"Tell me a story." He said, took a sip of his tea and waited patiently as she decided on how to respond.
"Ok, fine…." She said, finally. "I'll tell you the story about how I met Hibiki." She said, a smirk on her lips.
"So I was at this bar with Bacchus…."
OOO
"I guess I've got to get back to work now." Cana said, glancing at the angry text from Bacchus, asking why she was already twenty minutes late returning their call. Laxus barely even noticed that it was 5am.
"Yeah, I better get home." Laxus said gruffly, getting his stuff together.
"I'll see you tomorrow night," Cana called after him as he approached the door. "try not to get too bored without me." She said with a grin, but before Laxus could reply Bacchus was already in her ear.
"Look, I'm sorry. I fell asleep, it's late over here." Cana said, waving to him as he shut the door.
"Let's just get back to business."
