Celty and Midnight Adventures

"Good morning friend." Shyanne muttered, spinning into the small cubicle. "What did you do last night?"

"Morning Shy," Mercy yawned, "Da called, I was thinking about leaving early Friday so I could stay the weekend with my parents. Do you wanna join in on the love affair?"

"Sounds wondrous, but I have a date." Shyanne frowned. "But next time, I swear, o, and don't forget to tell them I send my love."

"Sure," Mercedes rolled her eyes. "So what's on my to-do list today?'

"You have a book called 'At the End,' and another book called, 'Where I Come From.'" Shyanne muttered, as she handed her friend the envelopes. "Enjoy."

"I will thank you."

"So, what else did you do last night?"

"I had dinner with a guy, and I made plans with Celty to have a drink this week."

"I'm sorry, all I heard was, 'I had dinner with a guy,' please do tell me more."

"Maybe later, I need to work." Mercy sighed. "Is there anything else I need to know?"

"Naw, O, wait….They have a deadline."

Mercedes glanced at her blond friend questioningly, before prompting her friend to continue. "Don't leave me in suspense, when is everything due."

"Wednesday morning." Shyanne muttered, biting her bottom lip nervously.

"Tomorrow morning, huh, Shyanne, when did Mr. Boss Man give you these books?"

"Don't be mad Mercy," Shy groaned. "He gave them to me Friday, but I forgot to give them to you."

"Its fine, I'll have them done before tonight's over. I'll just have to take homework home."

"Thanks friend… and I'm sorry again."

"It's ok, I'll see you later friend."

After eight straight hours of editing, I was no closer to the end of my first book. The author, no matter how talented, has many errors, making my job much harder. Shyanne left the building about an hour ago, and the others were getting ready to leave. As the others passed, Mercy exchanged the proper goodbyes, and continued to work. Once again alone, Mercy leaned back into her chair. Externally she looked tired but internally she was filled with emotions: anger, exhaustion, happiness, and worry.

Hey Shy, since I'm stuck at the office, could you feed Goldie?

*Ballad of Mona Lisa*

Taking a slight break, to wait for her friends reply, Mercedes pulled her hair into a braided bun and walked around the office. It would have been a great idea if she had picked up something to eat for dinner, before the janitor left, but she was determined to finish the two books before the boss walked through his office door. As she made her third lap around the editor's cubicles, her phone started buzzing.

Mercy, you left your sweater at my place, do you have time for me to drop it off?

Mercy yawned, quietly before sending Izaya a quick text.

Right now I'm at work, but maybe you can send it tomorrow. Thanks.

*Ballad of Mona Lisa*

Well I'm near Wolf-man and Heart; I could drop it off right now. Have you eaten yet?

No, I forgot to buy dinner…

*Ballad of Mona Lisa*

Hello friend, sorry about that again, but I already fed Goldie. I'll see you later.

*Princess Pete*

Thanks, I'll see you tomorrow

*Ballad of Mona Lisa*

After taking a short, water, break Mercy found herself pacing the isles between the cubicles. She needed the distraction from the tedious book she was reading, and the exercise helped to keep her muscles from stiffening up. Once again her phone buzzed impatiently against her thigh.

"Hello," she questioned.

"Let me in." Izaya's voice pierced the silence.

"I did say you can drop it off later, did I not?" Mercy questioned, entering the elevator anyways.

"You did, but I didn't listen, so come on down."

When the doors closed, Mercedes hung the phone up. It may have been rude, but she was sure Izaya wouldn't take offense. Nearly falling asleep on the elevator ride down, Mercy jumped when the doors dinged open. She could see him from the elevator, standing in front of the glass doors.

"I got you something to eat," Izaya muttered handing her a takeout bag. "Well, I more got us something to eat, but first things first, here is your sweater."

"Thank you," she smiled.

"So, where are we going to eat?"

"Uh, we can go to my office, or-"

"Sounds great," Izaya cheered, pushing past the silver haired girl. "Come now, you need to show me where I'm going."

With a deep sigh, Mercy walked the bubbly man into the elevator. The ride up to the editing level seemed to take longer than usual but after a moment both of their phones went off. Mercedes couldn't help but smile, before answering her phone.

"Wolf-men and Heart, this is Mercedes."

"Hi darling, how are you doing?" Mercy's mother's tired voice questioned.

"I am well, and yourself?"

"About the same, more or less, why are you still at work?"

"There was a last minute book that needed to be done. O, Is it ok if I come down this weekend to spend time with you and Da?"

"Of course, I was just calling to ask about that." A sigh exited her mother's throat. "I have to go, but we'll see you when you get here."

"Ok, love you, bye."

Mercy hung up, glancing bashfully at Izaya, knowing he heard every word of that. His sly smirk teased her quietly.

"Parents," he questioned when the doors opened up.

"Yeah, you know how things are." Mercy sighed. "Here's my cubicle, I'll go get plates and such." She paused momentarily. "Please make yourself as comfortable as possible."

The staff kitchen was a hop, skip, and a jump away, making the trip a quick one, but long enough for Mercy to think. When she arrived back to her desk, she handed Izaya a paper plate and plastic utensils.

"Thanks for picking up food," Mercy half smiled.

"No problem, so this is what your office looks like?" Izaya questioned, looking around the sparsely decorated cubicle.

"Yeah, it's my home away from home." Mercy sighed.

"Why don't you have anything personal hanging up?"

Mercy took a moment to look at the dull gray walls, before taking the plate from Izaya. The plate was loaded with some type of Russian food and veggies.

"My house, for the most part, is the same." Mercy yawned. "I'm not one for putting everything on display."

Izaya instantly chuckled, making Mercedes send him a questioning glance. "You don't seem like the distant type."

"Is that because I'm female, or because I've been so open to you?" Mercy couldn't help but roll her eyes.

"Because of your friend, mainly, and some because your female." He smirked at her sarcastic reply.

"What do my friends have to do with how I seem?"

"Your friends are loud and obnoxious, it's just logical for you to be the same." He glanced at his companion, before eating more food.

"I can see how that can be the logical answer, but it's the wrong one." Mercedes half smiled. "Anyways, what are you doing out and about, at this hour?"

"Work mainly and partially needed a break away from people." He sighed. "Either way, it's not important. Celty tells me the two of you have plans this weekend." He prompted.

"Yeah, I wanted to take her out for a night of drinking. So I hope you don't have any plans for her."

"I don't, just keep her safe. I really don't want to deal with Shinra, if anything happens."

The two adults laughed quietly, before once again Mercedes desk phone went off. It wasn't imperative for her to answer it, so she didn't, but the noisy distraction reminded her she needed to get work done. She groaned quietly, of all the nights, tonight Izaya had to feel talkative.

"Izaya, I have work to do." She finally sighed.

"Don't let me stop you." He smiled, as he leaned back in her chair.

"You're going to sit there as I work?"

Mercy sent Izaya a questioning glance, almost unsure what to say to the strange man.

"Yes, just for a little while, after all, I still have some work to do." He chuckled seeing her disbelief. "Now go!"

Six hours later, and a few mental break downs later, Mercy had finished editing the two books. At some point Izaya had left her, she was thinking sometime between her first and second break down, leaving her to do her job. Once she sent it to her boss, she swore never again would she do this. Even though, she knew she would.

Four a.m. flashed on the bottom of her computer screen. At this point it wouldn't make sense to go home, since she would have to be back here in two hours, but exhaustion would catch up to her sooner or later. Mercy wasn't one to call in sick too often, that's why when she disappeared for a year she still had a job.

Dear Mr. Boss-Man,

I know don't call you that. Due to a mix up; I had to stay in the office till four a.m. because I will be of no use to you if I pass out from exhaustion I will be coming in late today. But I will be coming in.

Much love,

Mercy

Somewhere between getting home and her phone shocking awakening, she had six and a half hours of blissful sleep. At first she tried to ignore the angry electronic device, but after the third round of buzzing, Mercy answered it with a slightly aggressive tone.

"Good morning to you too, my friend," Chan's voice murmured on the other end.

"What's up, Channy Manny?"

"Not much, Shy and I are going for lunch; you up to the task?"

"Sure, Sure," Mercy paused before glancing at her clock. "Give me like, fifteen minutes, and I'll meet you guys…"

She let her sentence drift off, since her friend hadn't told her where they were eating just yet.

"I haven't won that argument yet..." Chan giggled. "But if you appear in front of the Corner Café, we will have to go there."

"So you're using me as an instrument to victory?" Mercy questioned.

"Yes, I mean what else are you useful for?"

"Gasp, Channy, you're being an ass…" The two girls were on the verge of laughing, but both held up well. "Fine, I'll meet you two there in about twenty minutes, don't be late please."

After hanging up with her friend, Mercedes pulled her blue jeans and black tank-top on. Before leaving, she grabbed a black jacket with a silver dragon design on it, so she wouldn't look too informal when she got into work.

She should have known her friends weren't going to be on time. It was just the circle of life for her. So now she sat at their normal table with both girls' orders, waiting for them to get there. It wasn't until she heard the commotion of an argument nearby, that she noticed the two girls walk in. Again this is a normal thing people witnessed when they were together.

"So you guys know what today is, right?" Mercy sighed, calling their attention to her.

"Drunken karaoke," the girls shouted excitedly.

"Yes, anyways, I was thinking…Maybe we could invite Celty."

"Who," Chan questioned.

"This motorcyclist who tried to kill us," Shyanne replied, with an annoyed sigh. "Why, are we inviting her?"

"Because I said we would have a drink with her sometime, and she's free this today."

Hey Celty, are we still on for tonight?

*Balled of Mona Lisa*

Shy sighed, before glancing over to their red haired friend, before punching her shoulder. Something told Mercy there was going to be some unpleasantness, in the next few minutes. Before taking another sip of her coffee, Mercy pushed her chair back a bit, and tried to get out of the twos way. There was no reason to stop their childish behavior yet.

"What the fuck was that for dude?" Chandasea yelped, as she groped the now sore skin.

"That's for using Mercy as an object of victory!" Shyanne nearly yelled.

She was angry; anyone who was in a ten foot radius could tell that, the only problem is none of the two girls knew what particularly was pissing her off. Once the yelling got too noisy, the manager of the building walked over, but stopped. Confusion was written all over his face. Who was he going to confront? He had a choice, should he confront the two girls who were creating the disturbance, or the cool calm collected one, who sat far away? Mercy made it easier for him by waving for him to come over.

"I know they are getting too loud. I'll break them up. Tell the customers I am truly sorry for the disturbance."

"Thank you, normally we would have come over sooner, but I was hoping you would…" he let his voice drop, as if unsure if he should continue.

"Yes, normally I would have stopped them sooner as well, but-"Mercy sighed. "But I've been a bit distracted. Thank you."

Her dismissal wasn't really rude, but it did have an edge to it. When he walked away, she decided she really did need to deal with her childish friends. Her amused mask turned into a stern, motherly, façade.

"The both of you need to stop this behavior, right this instant."

Mercy's stern voice instantly stopped Shy and Chan argument. There were a few reasons her friends called her the "mother" of the group. Her strange ability to stop things instantaneously was one of those reasons, as well as, her motherly habits.

"That's much better, it's time to leave."

Yes, I'll meet you at the Karaoke bar at seven, right?

Yes, see you then…you can bring Shinra if you wish.

*Ballad of Mona Lisa*

'Maybe brining up her lover wasn't a good idea,' Mercy thought, as the small group walked through central park. Once they reached the fountain the three girls split ways.

The hallways were empty as Mercy skipped around singing Panic! At the Disco's, Glory. Shyanne had left an hour earlier, due to a stomach ache, leaving Mercy by herself at the end of the day. When she reached the elevators, Mercy pressed the down button continuously for a moment, and then she stopped completely satisfied with herself.

"Music from the heavens..." A familiar voice sang, when the doors opened. "My beautiful angel, have I finally found where you work?"

"Good evening Masaomi, how are you doing?"

"I am perfect now," he sighed as he swooned against the wall. "Will I be graced with your presence?"

"Of course," Mercy chuckled. "Were you stalking me to work today?"

"Not at all, I just fallowed you after gym…There is nothing creepy about that."

There was something about the seriousness on his face, that made Mercy hesitate, but she continued on. The elevator walls shook as the two descended, before halting between the third and fourth levels. After a moment of no movement, Mercy's breathing became short rapid bursts.

"My angel, are you ok?"

Mercy continuously pushed the lobby button, not fully hearing Masaomi.

"W-why isn't the elevator moving?" She muttered, more to herself than to him.

"It probably froze, don't worry about it. They will fix it soon."

"No," Mercy practically shouted. "You have no idea what this means."

Masaomi smirked slightly, as he watched his beloved angel's panic attack. His body rested against the glass walls, as he watched her shaking figure.

"You wouldn't happen to be claustrophobic, would you?" he questioned with a mocking smirk.

Mercedes snorted, half annoyed with his comment and snotty disposition. "My mom's claustrophobic; I can go in any small space….but when it comes to an elevator that's different."

"It gives us more time to chat, my wondrous angel."

It was his confidence that forced her body to relax, and slide down the metal walls of the elevator. After all, they might be stuck there for hours…. Maybe that wasn't the best thought to have. Masaomi smiled, before sitting beside her.

"Why are you afraid of elevators?"

"We are dangling a hundred feet off of the ground with nothing but rope and bolts holding us up. Forget how much this metal death trap weighs, if those components break we will plummet to the ground and die a terrible death."
Amusement settled on Masaomi's face, before he chuckled.

"So there I am, stuck in an elevator with Masaomi, when the doors are forced open by our rescue team. By the time they got there, the two of us had started an actual game of Legend of the Five Rings, which means there are cards all over the floor." Mercy chuckled. "It was terrible fun, and cramped."

"And that's why you're late?" Shyanne questioned, as she looked at her silver haired friend dubiously.

"Yeah…that and I walked Masaomi home. Children his age shouldn't be wondering around town by themselves at night." Mercy paused. "I'm starting to sound like my mom."

"Yes, yes you are. Now can we get our drink on?" Chan asked, after a moment

"Who's acting D.D?"

Both Chan and Shyanne glanced at each other, before Celty lifted her hand. Mercy sighed and tossed some money at her blond friend.

"Sure, I'll get first drinks, thanks for asking." Shyanne muttered as she rolled her eyes.

"As a warning, if those girls manage to get me drunk enough to do karaoke, I am trusting you to stop me. Is that clear?" Mercy muttered, watching her friends walk to the bar.

Celty nodded, before frantically typing something to her phone.

Why, you don't like to sing?

"Not at all, well, not in public….." There was a long pause, before Mercy was able to muster up the courage to bring out her curious side. "Are you really the headless rider?"

Maybe it was her imagination, but Mercy watched as the fun young lady she was with tense up. Before either girl had time to say anything, both Chan and Shy crashed the party with drinks.

"Goal for the night," Chan started, "To get our stage fright friend onto that stage, and sing something."

"I'll toast to that!"

"It's not going to happen, but good luck."

Mercy didn't remember turning into such a loud, and obnoxious, person when she gets drunk, but here she was laughing and talking so all could hear. Though, thankfully, her friends made her volume more acceptable. By midnight, all three girls were dancing on the makeshift dance floor and singing any song that came on the radio.

Shouldn't we start heading out?

Celty questioned, the intoxicated woman.

After all, Mercy has a flight in the morning, and you should really start to sober up now.

Both Shyanne and Chan continued to dance around, ignoring the only sober person in the bar, but Mercedes stared at the glowing screen in awe. For a moment Celty wondered if Mercy was going to throw up, or something else.

Are you ok?

Unable to speak Mercy shook her head no, and rushed off the dance floor. Mercy groaned, leaning her head onto her shoulder. When her body convulsed forward, she once again found herself releasing last night's dinner. It wasn't until she felt a damp paper towel on her forehead, that Mercy noticed she wasn't alone in her stall.

"Too much to drink?"

The voice sounded like a man's, forcing Mercy to glance over her shoulder. Seeing broad shoulders, a chiseled face, and short spiked hair conformed that he was indeed a man, which lead to more questions. In her rush to the bathrooms, did Mercy accidently go into the male bathroom, or was she about to get raped? And why on this green earth did this man seem so familiar?

Again, Mercy was unable to vocally answer, so she nodded her head quietly.

"My name is Kohaku, I work for the bar, is there anyone I can get to pick you up?"

Mercy went to shake her head, but remembered her friends on the dance floor. She quickly nodded her head, before handing him her cell phone. At first he stared at her in slight confusion, but he called the last number that was on her phone.

"Hi this is Kohaku, I work for the Damn Bar." He paused as if someone were talking on the other end. "Yeah, well there is a young lady who's a little too drunk to make it home, and you were the last person to call her. Would you happen to know…." He paused and leaned closer to Mercy. "What's your name sweetie?"

"M-Mercy," she breathed, trying to chock down the next upcoming of food.

"Would you happen to know a Mercy?" he paused again, and took the time to place a new wet paper towel on her forehead. "That's great; when you get her head to the bar, and I'll give bring her to you." When he was done, he picked Mercy up, and walked out of the bathroom. "Ok honey, your friend is on his way, but for now, here is aspirin and some water."

Mercy groaned as she broke up the aspirin with her teeth, before swallowing the powder down with water. Kohaku, helped her to an old cot behind the bar. Mercedes buried her face into the smooth fabric. The sheets smelled like they had just come out of the drier, and they were warm too.

"You can sleep here until your friend gets here. I suggest you drink plenty of water and sleep when you get home."

The deep tones of Kohaku's voice, floated Mercy to sleep, before he could finish talking. It felt like she had been asleep for moments, before Kohaku woke her up again.

"Ok sweetheart, your friend is here. I've told him everything he needs to know. Now be safe." He muttered, before handing her over to another pair of arms. "You keep her safe ok."

A chuckle echoed in her ears, before the two bodies walked off to the front door.

"I see you're quite the party girl." Another chuckle fallowed the words.

The voice sounded familiar, but Mercy couldn't quite place where she's hear it. All she could think of, was the painful echo that pierced her brain. An anguished groan left her lips before she leaned her head against the cool glass of a cars window. The chill of the window helped with her nausea. There was another voice piercing the quiet, before the car jolted forward. Another wave of nausea shook her body, but she managed to hold down what was left in her stomach.

"Come on, let's get you into bed."

A gurgling noise exited her throat, as she stumbled into a blindingly white building. This wasn't her apartment complex. The elevator stopped on level four, and the two bodies walked down the hall to the last room at the end.

"Ok girly, you can have the bed," He muttered before sitting Mercy onto the bed. "The bathroom is through that door, try to throw up in there. Now sleep, I'll waked you up tomorrow."

Her body fell backwards, into the cushioned bed. It took moments for her to fall asleep.