Hey guys! Dropping in with another update! 8D

I really hope you guys enjoyed the last chapter, and will enjoy this one as well. This one is sorta setting up a little something for the sequel...ahaha. And I can once again thank my friends for putting the idea into my brain! XDD

Anyways...I hope you guys are continuing to enjoy this little ramble of my mind seeing you guys do so makes me so happy! Thank you guys so much for your support!

Also we're rapidly approaching the ending! I'm really thinking only one or two more chapters depending on length. Goodness can't believe we're almost there... .

Anyways...on to the story! 8D

Disclaimer: Nope...still don't own Mystic Messenger, all of it's copyrights belong to Cheritz! I do however, own Ari and would appreciate you asking before using her. Thankies!

Chapter 9: Cat-astrophe

After the chaos of the last scene that was caused by the Oil Prince's sons the party went back to it's normal flow. As Jaehee had said it was long until the Auctions were to begin.

Ari found herself standing near the door ways to the side hall where the auctions were to be held smiling brightly as the guests began to flood into the room.

Her eyes still darted from the guests to the gorgeous photos that lined the walls along the hall. She was still marveling at their beauty.

V truly had a gift, that thought caused a wave of sadness to wash over her at the thought that with his eyes as bad as they seemed there may not be anymore of these gorgeous works.

She quickly shook her head to get rid of such thoughts, quickly smiling as another guest passed her.

Soon the hall was filled with guests and she and the rest of the RFA had moved themselves to several chairs that lined the walls.

Ari found herself setting between Yoosung and Zen as she eagerly awaited the beginning of the auctions.

Both Yoosung and Zen kept chuckling at her practically bouncing in her seat as Jaehee, Jumin, and V put the finishing touches together before they began.

"This is so exciting!" She commented her blue eyes dancing a little bit.

"Ahaha...I suppose so, the last time we did one of these we made a lot of money and there were no pictures left at all." Zen stated grinning at her.

"Wow...I hope this one is just as great!" She said beaming which caused Yoosung to chuckle at her enthusiasm.

"With that sorta attitude I'm sure it will be, though you might want to stop moving when it starts. Don't want them to think your bidding after all." He said smirking a little as he teased her.

Ari paled a bit and stopped her moving.

"Good point...I don't think I can compete with anyone in here." She said glancing around the full hall that was bustling with chatter.

The chatter stopped as Jumin made his way to the front of the room and began to speak to the audience. He introduced V and explained the rules of the auction before beginning the event.

Ari sat eyes a glow as she watched the bids come in on the different pieces of art. She was correct in saying she'd never be able to compete with the money that was being bid.

She could feel her head swirling slightly at all the numbers that were being thrown out, yet there was a deep sense of pride at knowing she had had a hand in helping to make this all possible.

She happened to glance out of the side of her eye and instantly felt a small pit form in her stomach at seeing Yoosung's half lidded gaze as he watched the auctions. The dark circle under his right eye had gotten worse and she could only imagine how exhausted he was.

She was just about to ask him if he wanted to go find somewhere that he could actually rest when she happened to catch Jaehee out of the corner of her eye.

Her brows furrowed as she suddenly watched the brunette stiffen and place a hand to the ear that she had an ear piece in. She could see her amber eyes widen suddenly and all the color drain from her face as she quickly whispered something into the ear piece.

Ari felt her confusion and worry grow as she saw Jaehee's eyes dart over to Jumin and then back again as she quickly whispered something else into her earpiece.

Nodding her head her amber eyes met Ari's blue, and for a second it was as if Ari could read her thoughts. Something wasn't right.

Quickly and quietly Ari got to her feet, causing the others to all blink in surprise Yoosung starting a little from his half dazed state as they all eyed her.

"Ari...what are you doing?!" Hissed Seven clearly as confused as the others.

"Jaehee needs us..." She whispered back motioning with her head towards the side of the stage where the other woman was looking slightly panicked as she glanced between them and Jumin who was still to involved in the Auction to notice the commotion that was going on.

Finally getting the message the three men finally got to their feet and followed Ari towards the stage.

"Thank goodness...I was afraid I'd have to come to you." Jaehee whispered as they go within hearing range.

"What's the problem?" Ari asked clearly worried as they gathered around her.

Jaehee quickly glanced back to Jumin to make sure he wasn't listening before turning back to the others her brows furrowing.

"It's Elizabeth..." She said in a much more hushed whisper.

"The fur ball? What's so important about that damned cat that it couldn't wait till after the Auction?" Zen asked clearly not impressed.

"Hey...don't talk about my Elly like that..." Seven stated glaring at Zen the argument probably would have continued if Ari hadn't interrupted.

"Guys...please..." She stated clearly sensing the severity of the situation by the way Jaehee was acting.

"Thank you, Ari. Anyways...it seems that she wasn't secured correctly in the carrier Mr. Han brought. And when one of the attendants went to give her the food he'd requested she managed to dart out of the room she was in..." Jaehee relayed quietly as she swallowed hard.

"Oh no...Jumin is going to flip when he finds out!" Yoosung stated his eye widening as he too glanced over to where Jumin had finally taken notice of the meeting and seemed to be getting antsy as he continued on with the Auction.

"That's an understatement...his own fault for bringing the fur ball to the party in the first place." Zen stated with a shrug earning himself a look from Seven in the process.

"Be as that may...we have to find her before Mr. Han finds out. Least we want the party to end in disaster..." Jaehee stated as she pushed her glasses up the bridge of her nose.

Ari nodded in agreement.

"That's just what we need is Mister Trust Kid having a melt down cuz his precious fur ball went missing." Zen stated rolling his eyes as he crossed his arms.

"We can go look for her Jaehee..." Yoosung suggested glancing at Ari and then at Seven who all nodded in response.

"Would you? The security said they blocked off all the exists as soon as the call was made. And they've been monitoring the doors and haven't seen her leave yet so she still must be somewhere in the main hall." Jaehee explained quietly suddenly giving a forced smile as Jumin once again glanced in her direction.

"Sure thing! Come on...let's hurry up and find her." Ari stated nodding enthusiastically.

"I apologize for this Ari, I know how much you were enjoying the auction. I don't know why all of this is having to happen during your first party." Jaehee sighed a little as she shook her head.

"It's fine...finding Elizabeth is more important at the moment." She said flashing Jaehee a reassuring smile.

"Zen, you should stay here and help Jaehee..." Ari stated suddenly turning to the white haired man causing him to blink in surprise.

Jaehee nodded her head in agreement.

"Ari has a point, Zen. It won't do you any good if you're the one who finds Elizabeth...you've taken enough on just being around her at the party." Jaehee stated quietly.

Zen paused seeming to think it over.

"True...my complexion is already suffering as is..." He said sniffling dramatically which caused Ari to roll her eyes.

"Alright...then you stay here with Jaehee and keep Jumin occupied. We'll go find Elizabeth." Ari stated glancing at Yoosung and Seven who all nodded.

"Operation rescue Elly is A-GO!" Seven suddenly stated very loudly as he pumped his fist in the air.

"SSSSHHHH!" Came the unanimous sound from the four others as they all glared at the red haired hacker.

Seven's eyes widened and he quickly clapped a hand over his lips as they all glanced at Jumin who was giving them all an odd look from where he was obviously trying to continue with the Auction.

"Come on..." Yoosung hissed motioning with his head towards the door as the others followed behind him.

Once they were in the main hall and the door to the auction hall was closed they all began to glance around.

"Where would she have gone?" Ari questioned quietly realizing how much space they had to cover as she looked around the hall and all it's side rooms.

"Well she's a cat...and knowing that she's in a strange place and probably scared. She probably wanted to find somewhere dark and quiet to hide." Yoosung stated with a sigh also realizing what they were up against.

"Let's get started...standing here chatting isn't finding Elly." Seven stated as he began to walk around making cat noises and glancing under the table clothes of the tables that were nearby.

Ari sighed and shook her head a little bit at the odd noises he was making in an attempt to find Elizabeth but she had little time to think on it as she and Yoosung began to do something similar.

"Here kitty, kitty..." Yoosung called gently as he winced as he leaned down to look under another table.

Ari gave him a sympathetic look as they continued their search.

"I hate to say it...but I think we might do better if we split up." Yoosung stated with a sigh as he rubbed the side of his head absently as he looked around the hall.

"You think?" She asked concerned at leaving him on his own.

"We can cover more space...not to mention you can do a lot more then I can at the moment." He said chuckling a little as he gave her a soft smile.

"Just remember to check everywhere...and the darker and the smaller the space the better." He said as he began to search again.

Ari nodded her head a little bit as she began to wonder in the opposite direction glancing under table clothes as she went.

After a little while of looking Ari was starting to wonder if Seven or Yoosung had had any more luck then she was. She'd have to complement Jumin later on Elizabeth's ability to vanish into thin air.

She was really starting to worry that perhaps she'd managed to sneak past one of the security guards and she was actually loose in another part of the hotel.

She raised an eyebrow as she noticed a small side room nearby, one that she was fairly certain hadn't been checked yet.

Wandering in the direction of the room she found it unoccupied, with a few smaller tables arranged about it. This was clearly a setting room meant for those that wanted to get away from the hustle and bustle of the party.

She quietly glanced around the room debating on if she should check under the table clothes or to just move on when she happened to catch something white and fluffy sticking out from under one of the tables.

"Elizabeth?" She asked suddenly feeling her heart flutter in her chest as she moved closer to the table, kneeling down to get a better look.

"Meow?" Came was the sound Ari heard from under the table.

"Oh thank goodness! Jumin is going to be so relieved that we fou...AAAGH!" Ari started to say relief washing over her for a brief second. But it was quickly cut off by what came out from under the table and reared itself in front of her.

So caught off guard by the sudden appearance of what appeared to be a cross between a cat and an inch worm Ari let out a small cry as she lost her balance and fell backwards on to her rump.

For once today she was glad she had on pants.

She blinked from behind her glasses as she stared at the white creature before her. It took her several seconds to remember exactly what this thing was, it looked like a cat with a giant elongated body wearing a bow tie.

It blinked it's huge blue eyes at her before it reared itself up onto it's hind legs much like she'd seen some dachshunds do when they begged.

"L-Long Cat...right?" She asked suddenly remembering the freaky looking cat that Seven had just insisted she invite as a guest.

"Nyannyan!" Came the reply as the cat tilted his head and blinked at her.

"I'm sorry...I thought you were a different cat..." She said laughing a little bit as she sighed the disappointment setting in that she hadn't found Elizabeth.

"Meowmeowyan!" Came the reply from the odd looking cat as it hunched up his body and seemed to set before her.

"I'm looking for my friend, Jumin's cat Elizabeth the Third." She found herself saying as she continued to peer at the odd cat.

'Wait...am I actually having a conversation with a cat?!' She thought to herself feeling her eye twitching slightly as she realized what she was doing.

"Mewmewmeowmew!" Long Cat replied as he tilted his head and blinked at her.

'Yup...I'm talking to a cat. I've finally lost my mind...' She thought with a sigh as she made to get up deciding she could worry about her mental state later.

"Sorry Long Cat...but I really do need to find Elizabeth..." She said flashing the cat a smile.

"MEOW!" Was the cat's reply as he seemed to shift to look back at the table that he'd come from.

"Thank you...but I really don't know what..." Ari started to say clearly wanting to continue on her search but she stopped when something else began to rustle from under the table at Long Cat's call.

Her blue eyes widened in surprise when another cat gracefully walked out from under the table cloth, it's fur glistening white as it came to set beside the other cat it's beautiful blue eyes peering up at her curiously.

"Meow?" Elizabeth seemed to reply to Long Cat as she continued to peer up at Ari with curious eyes.

"Elizabeth! Oh thank goodness I found you! Were you under there the entire time?" Ari asked a small laugh escaping her in relief as she started down at the newly appeared cat.

She noticed the way the two cats seemed to look at each other for a moment, if the situation hadn't been what it was she probably would have found it adorable.

"Were you watching over her Long Cat? Thank you..." She said smiling happily.

The long bodied cat turned to her his blue eyes seeming to shine as he let out a happy purr as if saying she was welcome.

"Come on Elizabeth...we have to get you back before Jumin notices your missing." Ari said gently as she held out her arms to pick her up.

Elizabeth seemed to eye her for a second or two sizing her up before she let out a content purr and allowed Ari to pick her up. She instantly snuggled against her chest and purred happily.

Ari giggled a little bit as she gently stroked the cat's soft fur as she stood up and started to make her way out of the room.

"Well, Elizabeth it seems you've caused quite the commotion...but we won't tell Jumin about any of this will we?" She asked the cat as they made their way back across the hall.

The cat purred in response causing Ari to giggle.

"We also won't tell him that I really do think you're a beautiful cat, I can already hear what he'd say to that." She said giggling again as she shook her head.

Yoosung was the first to see her coming his eye lighting up when he noticed Elizabeth in her arms.

"Oh thank goodness! You found her...we were starting to think she'd some how managed to escape out into the rest of the hotel!" He said his voice sounding relieved and Ari had to wonder if he was close to tears or not from relief.

"Nah, she'd just managed to find herself a quiet spot to hide." Ari stated giggling as Elizabeth rubbed her head against her and purred.

"She seems to really like you..." Yoosung stated chuckling a little bit as he reached out a hand to gently scratch Elizabeth behind the ear also earning him a purr.

"She's got really good taste...something I'm sure isn't from Jumin." Yoosung stated causing Ari to lightly smack him on the arm.

Yoosung chuckled a bit as he rubbed his arm as Seven approached them.

"ELLY! I was so worried I'd never see you again! How's my girl?!" Seven practically bounced up to him his golden eyes shining brightly as he saw the cat in Ari's arms.

Elizabeth took one look at him and her blue eyes narrowed as her ears went back.

Ari could feel her tensing up as the hacker approached, she also remembered his track record from what Jumin had told them.

"Umm...Seven maybe you shouldn't mess with her at the moment..." Ari stated quietly trying to calm Elizabeth down.

"Yeah...the last thing we need is you harassing her and her running away again." Yoosung stated dryly as he gave his friend a look.

"Harass? Me? Never! I love Elly! Isn't that right?" He asked flashing the cat a smile and earning himself what sounded almost like a growl in return.

"Alright...well that answers that question. Let's just go put her back where she belongs..." Ari stated quickly as she pushed by Seven and began to make her way to where the Security Guards were waiting for them.

Yoosung laughing as he saw the heartbroken look on Seven's face as Ari walked by.

"I think that meant she dumped you..." He said earning himself a glare from Seven.

"There was love in that growl! Love I say!" Seven stated obviously in denile.

"Uh-huh...whatever you say..." Yoosung stated shaking his head as they followed Ari.

After making sure Elizabeth was securely locked back in her carrier this time. Ari and the others made their way back into the Auction Hall.

They silently made their ways back to their chairs, glad to see Zen and Jaehee standing up on the stage fully keeping Jumin's attention on the auction.

At seeing their return Jaehee seemed to almost slouch in relief, Zen grinning happily and giving them a quick thumbs up.

The auction finished shortly after. Ari found herself stretching slightly as Jaehee and Zen made their way over to the rest of the group.

"Way to go you guys...crisis averted! Trust fund kid won't have to worry about sharing an empty bed tonight!" Zen stated grinning and causing Jaehee to give him a look.

"Yes, thank you very much for your assistance. I'm glad that was taken care of quickly." She said sighing in relief.

"What was taken care of quickly?" Jumin asked as he approached the group his gray eyes curious as he looked them all over clearly having figured out something was going on.

"Oh...just a minor technicality. But it's all been resolved now." Jaehee stated quickly eyeing the others not to say a word about what had happened.

"I see...well it must have been pretty important to have interrupted the auction in that manner. Anything I should be concerned about?" He asked raising an eyebrow and for a few brief seconds they all had to wonder if they were caught.

"Mr. Han if it was anything to be concerned about I would have told you personally during the Auction and we would have postponed the proceedings while you were involved. The situation was resolved...so let's not dwell upon it and return to the party at hand." Jaehee stated quietly clearly not wanting to give him anymore information.

"Very well then, I should go and check on Elizabeth the Third. I'm sure she was terribly lonely while I was away." Jumin stated seeming to relax a little bit as he took his leave from the rest of the group.

The others all seemed to let out the breaths they hadn't even realized they'd been holding.

"Yeah...she was really lonely while he was gone." Zen stated rolling his eyes a little bit.

"At least she's back where she belongs...I did not want to have to deal with Mr. Han's break down if she really had disappeared." Jaehee stated shuddering a little at the thought.

"I don't think any of us want to be around for that." Yoosung stated also shivering a little at the thought.

Ari could only nod her head a little bit as the chatter went on for a few more minutes. The excitement for the moment being over as the party continued on.

And that's it for Chapter 9! 8D

Ahaha...I really did have fun with this chapter. I'm so glad my friends put the little worm in my ear that inspired this chapter. As I said there will be a link here in the sequel...but we'll have to wait to see what that is. *Winks*

Anyways please remember to read, review, favorite, follow, and most importantly enjoy this story! I really love hearing from you guys and seeing your responses!

Thank you all so much!