Celestial Reyvateil: Hello everyone! It has been a while since I posted a chapter. All I have to say is I'm so sorry that this chapter was posted so late. A lot of things have been happening to me and my previous laptop had died in March, so I had to get a new one. Anyways, I better stop rambling for now so that you guys can enjoy this chapter!

Disclaimer: Celestial Reyvateil doesn't own Durarara! nor any songs or their English translations.

Chapter 10

Shizuo and Izaya twitched as they slowly regain consciousness. Their hands twitched and they felt something cold and smooth beneath their hands.

"They're slowly waking up." A familiar voice that oddly sounded like Shizuo's said.

Both men groaned and open their eyes. At first, their vision was blurry and shadowy. But slowly their vision was getting clearer and colors were getting more vivid. When their vision became completely clear, the first thing that they saw was the ceiling. However, that wasn't the only thing that caught their attention. What caught their attention the most was the two men who were looking down at them.

"What the hell..?" Shizuo murmured with eyes slowly widening. Looking down at them were two men who looked exactly identical them! In surprise and alarm, Izaya and Shizuo hastily got up. The two gazed at the two men who looked identical to them.

The one who looked like Shizuo was wearing a white kimono with a white and blue haori over it. In the man's right hand was a gold and ebony colored kiseru pipe. The pipe was slowly emitting wisps of smoke.

The one who looked like Izaya was wearing a prince outfit that had a long gold cape and a golden crown on his head. The Izaya look-alike was scowling at them, obviously not too happy with Shizuo and Izaya being here. Now that they think about it…where were they?

Shizuo and Izaya temporary took their attention off of the two men to observe where they were. They were in a large lobby. The lobby walls were painted in an Alice blue color, and the ceiling was painted in a midnight blue that had twinkling white stars. On the walls were lavender bluish wisterias, their vines seemly cling to the walls. Around the lobby were several chairs and two couches. The couches were on the left and right side of the lobby, and by the couches were two sets of chairs. The couches were red velvet, and the chairs were a pale yellow. On the red velvet couches were blue flower patterned pillows. Underneath the two couches was a fluffy black rug, two fluffy black rugs to be more exact since the couches were separate from each other. There were also two ivory coffee tables in the center of the two couches. The floor they were standing on was a white marble tiled floor.

"Who are you two?" Izaya asked.

The Izaya look-alike gazed at them for a bit and huffed at them. "Thou shouldn't be questioning the Mind Guardians of Mikado-sama." The prince said in an irked tone.

The Shizuo in the kimono glanced at the prince. "Calm down, Hibiya. You should know why they're here." The Shizuo look-alike said in a calm tone. Hibiya glared at the kimono clad Shizuo and huffed at him.

"Thee shouldn't be acting so calm, Tsugaru." Hibiya said.

Okay…things were now getting a tiny bit weird. Why were these two men looked just like them? And why was the clothing they were wearing looked so familiar? Shizuo and Izaya were about to ask them why the two looked like them, when something flashed in their minds. The image of the two plushies that they gave Mikado when they were kids appeared in their minds (although Shizuo's memory of the plushy was a bit on a hazy side, Izaya's memory of it was crystal clear).

The atmosphere was then suddenly filled with a solemn silence. The informant and the ex-bartender continued to stare at the two look-alikes. It wasn't until a few minutes later that Shizuo was the one to break the silence, "So…who are you two exactly?"

Tsugaru gazed at Shizuo. "As Hibiya has said, we are Mikado's Mind Guardians. I am Tsugaru and the one who is scowling is Hibiya." Tsugaru received a glare from Hibiya at that remark. "Mind Guardians protect a Songstress' Mental World from outside invaders," Tsugaru turned to Hibiya, as if cueing the other to finish for him.

Hibiya scowls at Tsugaru before he turns his attention to Shizuo and Izaya. "We also make sure that the two of thee dost not mess with anything in here." Hibiya said and before anyone could say anything, he turned his back to them and dematerialized.

Tsugaru sighed and just shook his head. "Sorry about that, Hibiya usually doesn't act like that." Tsugaru apologized. "Anyways, you two should have this," Tsugaru walks to Shizuo and hands him a brass key. The brass key had an ivy design etched onto its shaft, and the head was shaped as a circle that had red gemstones adorned on it.

"What is this for?" Shizuo asked with one of his eyebrows raised in confusion. Izaya looks down at the key in only mild confusion.

"You will need it to open the first level of Mikado's Mental World." Tsugaru stated and gestured them to look behind him. Behind Tsugaru were ten doors that had a different stained glass design on it. All of the stained glass doors were dim, except for one. Shizuo and Izaya gazed at the one stained glass door that was glowing. The design on the stained glass door showed Mikado wandering and being surrounded by different shades of blue. "Right now, only the door that opens to level 1 is accessible as of right now since I have given you the key. I will explain more as soon as possible. Mikado is waiting." And with that, Tsugaru disappeared but not in a manner similar to Hibiya's.

Chainsaw Bomb entered private chatroom.

Shiro Hoshi entered private chatroom.

Chainsaw Bomb: Why did you run away?

Shiro Hoshi: What do you mean?

Chainsaw Bomb: What I mean is, for a lack of a better word, why did you ran out of the dive shop with your tail in-between your legs?

Chainsaw Bomb: Rindou.

Shiro Hoshi: I thought that we agreed that we wouldn't use our real names while in the chatrooms.

Chainsaw Bomb: We also agreed to use our names when we're alone.

Shiro Hoshi: …Fair enough.

Chainsaw Bomb: So where are you now?

Shiro Hoshi: We're in a nearby café.

Shiro Hoshi: Aniki is looking at me, as if he wants to ask me something, and Leila's not looking at either of us.

Shiro Hoshi: This is a really awkward date…

Chainsaw Bomb: Well sorry if I'm interrupting your three-way date right now, but I'm curious as to why you ran out of the dive shop. : )

Shiro Hoshi: God damn it, thought you weren't going to ask about that!

Chainsaw Bomb: I didn't promise jack shit, Rindou. You should know that better than anyone else that I like to give almost everybody shit.

Chainsaw Bomb: Now spit it out.

Shiro Hoshi: *Rolls eyes* Fine.

Shiro Hoshi: You remember a few days ago that I told you about Shizuo, right?

Chainsaw Bomb: Yeah, what about it?

Shiro Hoshi: That was him!

Shiro Hoshi: Not only that but Izaya was also with him!

Shiro Hoshi: Heck, I'm still shock that they haven't tried to kill each other!

Shiro Hoshi: Anyways, I better go since the waiter is heading towards us.

Chainsaw Bomb: I expect you to tell me more tomorrow, Rindou.

Shiro Hoshi: We'll see, Kenna.

Shiro Hoshi has left the private chatroom.

Shiro Hoshi entered the private chatroom.

Shiro Hoshi: Oh, I almost forgot. Your little brother sent me a picture.

Chainsaw Bomb: What kind of picture?

Shiro Hoshi: He said that he took it before school started.

Chainsaw Bomb: …

Shiro Hoshi: Anyways, see you later.

Shiro Hoshi has left the private chatroom.

Chainsaw Bomb: That little shit!

Chainsaw Bomb has left the private chatroom.

As Shizuo inserted the brass key into the keyhole, he turned it. Both he and Izaya heard a soft click from the door. The ex-bartender and informant gave each other a brief glance before they entered the door. As they entered, the door itself closed behind them. When the door closed, the key that Shizuo had inserted into the keyhole disappeared.

At first, the only thing they could see was a light that was almost blinding. But the light was slowly dying down and dull colors were beginning to be visible. Once the light had died down completely, Shizuo and Izaya survey their new surroundings.

The two men were in a Japanese town that seemed to be vacant. All of the buildings were dark with no source of light inside them. As if that wasn't strange enough, the only thing that was illuminating the whole area was the bright blue sky. However they couldn't see a moon or sun up in the sky. Instead, there were 0's and 1's flashing randomly up in the sky. The sky also had a gleaming effect to it that reminded them of light reflecting off of water.

Izaya glazed at Shizuo for a brief moment, before he spoke, "Let's go find Mikado."

Shizuo nodded and the two began their search. As they search for Mikado, the two couldn't help but notice something in the distance. It was hazy and the only thing they could make out in the distance was a silhouette of a giant tree. However, before they could get a good look at the giant tree, something averted their attention away from the giant tree. Feet 10 away from them was a silhouette of a very familiar figure that the two knew all too well. The two men immediately sprinted toward the figure as if on instinct. But when they were about to reach the familiar figure, their eyes widened as the figure suddenly vanish from their sight.

The informant and ex-bartender blinked in confusion for a brief moment, before they turned to each other. "That was Mikado just now, wasn't it?" Shizuo uttered to Izaya.

Izaya wanted to roll his eyes at Shizuo, but resisted the urge to do so. "Who else would it be, you protozoan?" Izaya scoffed.

Shizuo glared at Izaya but stopped for a moment when he caught sight of something. Standing in front of one of the houses, was the same white haired girl that Mikado had summoned a few nights ago. What was her name again? Opposing Reflection was it? Yeah, that sounded right.

Izaya noticed that Shizuo was focusing on something else, so Izaya turned his head in the direction that the fake blond was looking in. "Shizu-chan, why are you staring at her?" Izaya asked with raised eyebrows.

"Shut it, Izaya. I've seen her before, so maybe she knows where Mikado is." Shizuo said as he walked toward the girl. The albino girl blinked and turned her head, to see who was approaching her.

"Mister Shizuo!" She said as she turned to face him, and the large mirror that neither of them noticed before was casually flouting by her. She took a peek at Izaya and smiled. "And Mister Izaya! What can I do for the two of you?"

Izaya turned to Shizuo with a semi-confuse expression on his face. Shizuo just replied with a shrug before he looked at the albino. "Um…Opposing Reflection, right?" Shizuo mentally sighed in relief when Opposing Reflection nodded. "Do you know where Mikado is?"

"You two are having trouble finding him?" Opposing Reflection inquired curiously and they nodded. "Well, that's because he's avoiding you two!"

Izaya and Shizuo blinked at her.

"What did you just said?" The two men asked in unison.

"I said that he's avoiding you two." Opposing Reflection repeated to them. For a whole one minute, the two men were silent. Then it hits them like a barrel of bricks.

"HE'S WHAT?!" Opposing Reflection jumped in surprise at their sudden outburst.

"What, you two didn't know?" The albino girl asked, clearly surprised. "Didn't Tsugaru-san or Hibiya-san tell you two? The first level of the Mental World means that the Songstress is chary. In this case, Mikado is reluctant in meeting you two." She merely stated as if it was a common fact.

Tsugaru watched from a safe distance as Izaya and Shizuo talked to the Song Magic that was known as Opposing Reflection. As a Mind Guardian, both he and Hibiya took their duties seriously, expectantly Hibiya. He took his duty more seriously than Tsugaru at times.

Tsugaru looks up at the surreal illuminating sky. Even though he and Hibiya were created when Shizuo and Izaya gave Mikado those plushies, they had different personalities. Hibiya had a short temper that wasn't as short as Shizuo's per se, but it was just as deadly as his temper and he himself was calm and collected as Izaya.

Tsugaru shifted a bit when he saw that Izaya and Shizuo walk away from Opposing Reflection. All he could do for now was watch and to step in when it was only necessity. It is after all, one of the reasons why a Mind Guardian was created for. Before Tsugaru could follow them, the sound of footsteps approaching him got his attention. Tsugaru turned around and was greeted with a still scowling Hibiya who was walking towards Tsugaru.

"So thee just going to just watch them?" Hibiya inquired as he came to a halt.

"What else would I be doing?"

Hibiya presses his lips together into a tight line. "Hast thou forgotten that they weren't there to comfort him?"

Tsugaru knew what Hibiya was implying with that sentence. It was a touchy subject for the both of them to say the least. When either one of them wanted to get the other's attention hastily, they would hint at the subject. Yes, it was a dirty trick, but it got the job done. Tsugaru suppresses the urge to shudder at the memory of said subject. The state Mikado was in was…something he hope will not happened again, anytime in the future.

Tsugaru sighs. "I haven't forgotten, Hibiya. What are you trying to get at?"

"Then why don't thou try and mess with them?" Hibiya suggested.

"Is this because you are still bitter at them, Hibiya?" Tsugaru asked with slightly narrowed eyes. "Because I have a strong suspicion that it is."

Hibiya just stared at Tsugaru and didn't say anything else.

"Opposing Reflection said that she last saw Mikado wandering around in the nearby city." Izaya said as he and Shizuo were walking to a city. The city itself was only a few miles away from the town that they had appeared in.

As they drew closer to the city, they noticed that the city looked like the district of Ikebukuro. Yet at the same time, it wasn't an exact replica of Ikebukuro. The two men could tell because they were more familiar with Ikebukuro than Mikado was. They also noticed subtle differences every now and then around the city. And just like the town, the city too was devoid of life.

"Wonder why there's no people." Shizuo said as he stopped and looked around their new surroundings.

Izaya also stopped walking to observe their surroundings. "Yes, that is curious as to why we haven't seen people yet. Besides that girl we just met."

From what Opposing Reflection had told them, the first level in a Songstress's Mental World was a level that was almost like a protective shell for the rest of the Mental World. A Songstress can at any time, even with visitors inside their Mental World, manipulate the level to a certain degree. She mentioned that a well-trained Songstress could manipulate the first level beyond its original purpose, but that wasn't the last thing that she told them. She also told them that if the Songstress was very extremely wary with an outsider (even if the Songstress themself wanted the outsider to dive into them), they can immediately kick the outsider out of their Mental World without a second thought.

When they asked her where she got that information, the albino girl merely smiled at them.

Shizuo was about to say something when he noticed that they were being watched. Peeking out from one of the buildings was a familiar pair of sapphire eyes. Shizuo unexpectedly looked in the direction that those sapphire eyes were watching them from, and both his eyes and the owner of the sapphire eyes widened. Before Shizuo could give a shout, the owner of the sapphire eyes flees.

"Wait!" Shizuo yelled as he ran after the one who had sapphire eyes. Izaya blinked in surprise at Shizuo's sudden dash, before he followed after Shizuo in a dash too.

As they ran after the fleeing figure, the city soon turned into a labyrinth. Buildings began to grow lofty and the streets themselves were being stretched. The sky too was also changing. The bright blue sky was now slowly turning to a navy blue and the 0's and 1's were now gleaming. The road rapidly changed, forcing the two to make sharp turns when they entered an alley. They didn't stopped running until they reached a tall irony building.

The figure ran inside the building and thorny black vines sprang from the ground and enveloped the irony building. Izaya reached into one of his jacket pockets to get a knife to cut the vines, but paused when he realized that the pocket was empty. Just to make sure he wasn't imagining things, he reached into the other pocket and sure enough, there were no knives.

"Where did they go?" Izaya grumbled and Shizuo raised an eyebrow.

"What is it?" Shizuo asks as Izaya was checking his pants pockets.

"I don't know where my knives are," Izaya replied in an irked tone.

"That's because items from the outside cannot be carry over to the Mental World." Izaya and Shizuo turned around to see Tsugaru, who was sauntering toward them. Izaya turned to Shizuo and sure enough, the fake blond didn't have on his signature sunglasses.

"What took you so long?" Shizuo asked with a hint of irritation. The paladin ignored the fact that he didn't have on his sunglasses.

"Sorry, I was dealing with Hibiya." Tsugaru stops walking and looks up at the building. "It looks like the only way to get into the building, would require Song Magic. And please don't try to rip them off of the door, Shizuo. The vines are only going to keep on regenerating."

"So what you're saying is that these vines can't be removed by normal means." Izaya said.

"That's correct," Tsugaru replied.

"Then that means, that we have to go back into the city to find someone or something to get rid of these vines?" Shizou guessed and Tsugaru nodded.

Shizuo and Izaya gazed back at the city-turned-labyrinth. The place was almost unrecognizable, that it didn't even resemble the place that they were in before. The structures of the lofty buildings were distorted, yet they were tall enough to reach the sky. The buildings windows were lit up, causing them to cast an eerily glow in the labyrinth. But that wasn't the only thing that they noticed. The two noticed that a light mist was slowly beginning to enter the labyrinth.

"Looks like we have to go back into the city." Izaya said with a light sigh. Shizuo didn't say anything, but he did seem to agree with Izaya.

Tsugaru watched as the two men walked to the labyrinth.

He stopped running to catch his breath. He fell to his knees as his breath came out in white puffs. Beads of sweat fell from his forehead, and he could feel his heart ponding in his chest that it felt like it could burst out at any moment. He never did liked doing a lot of physical exercise…

When he regained his breathing and his heart calmed down, he turned his head around and saw nobody. He sighs in relief and stands up. 'Good, they're not following me anymore…'

It's not like he didn't want to meet them, it was just that it wasn't the time yet; or was it just an excuse to not meet them? His mind was filled with anxiety that he can't think straight. He was so busy trying to calm himself down, he didn't even hear the sound of wings flapping behind him. It wasn't until he managed to calm bits of his mind down that he heard something land behind him. He didn't want to know what was behind him, but curiosity got the better of him. He turned around and sapphire eyes widened a bit.

"You're-!"

"How big can this damn place get?!" Shizuo exclaimed as he and Izaya were now running around the labyrinth. The light mist that they saw before entering the labyrinth, was now starting to become heavy and visibility of the city was getting low. Sure, they could still see the streets and buildings, but they couldn't see a good amount of their surrounds no matter how much they observe the place.

Izaya took a glance behind and briefly saw something. It was only for a brief moment, but he could have sworn that he saw a white silhouette amongst the gray mist. Was the mist playing tricks with his eyes? He shook his head and before he knew it, he ran into Shizuo, who came to a halt. Izaya fell backwards onto his rear end.

"Why did you stop, Shizu-chan?" Izaya asked with a bit of a grumble in his voice. Izaya stands up and scowls at Shizuo. Before he could say anything or rebuke Shizuo, he sidestepped to the left of Shizuo and a pair of grouped chakrams greeted him, more particularly the left side of the pair. The grouped chakrams then turned around (almost hitting Izaya and Shizou in the process) and both men were greeted by a teenage girl. The teenage girl looked to be around 18 years old who had shoulder length saffron colored hair, red eyes, and a fair skin tone. She was wearing a crimson sleeveless knee length dress with detached matching colored sleeves that had gold trimming. Embroidered on the hem of the dress were small golden birds, and gold accents adorned the midriff and the collarbone. She also had on white satin thigh high socks and black high heel shoes with ribbons attached to them that seemed to wrap around her legs.

Now that they have a clearer look at the woman, they could see the chakrams more visibly. The chakrams were silver with sharp jagged edges along the outside while the inside of the chakrams were a reddish orange. There were five chakrams grouped together on both sides of her back, making them seem like wings. She blinks at Shizuo and Izaya.

"Are you looking for something?" The saffron headed girl asked in a slightly irked tone.

"Uh…do you happen to be able to be a Song Magic?" Shizuo asked. He really did hope she was one because he didn't want to resume running around this damn labyrinth. Ever since they entered the labyrinth, this mist has been messing with his head a bit. He didn't know whether or not Izaya was effected by the mist as he was but he was getting a little bit pissed off. One moment he would see Mikado and in the next moment, he almost ran into a wall! Shizuo didn't think his patience wouldn't last any longer. If he doesn't calm down, he's going to break the first thing that catches his eye and throw it at Izaya. But at a time like this, he can't afford to be angry when they're trying to find Mikado. He'll have to be patient for a bit longer.

The girl scrutinizes Shizuo and Izaya. Once she was done, she nods in approval.

"To answer your question about me being a Song Magic, the answer is yes." She slightly bows to them. "My name is Dignity Gale and I'm at your service."

Shizuo sighs in relief. The annoyance that he just had was slowly dispersing.

"Then we are in need of your services." Izaya said and she looked at him.

"May I inquire why you need my assistance?"

"What is it now, Hibiya?" Tsugaru inquired in an annoyed tone. Just when he was going to tell Hibiya off, he paused when he saw the panicked expression on Hibiya's face. "What's wrong?"

"Two higher personalities have entered the level," Hibiya said and Tsugaru eyes widened.

"Which ones?"

"Level 6 and level 7,"

Tsugaru could feel the dread enter his body. Having more than two personalities in the same level can cause bad things to happen. Very bad things to happen. Tsugaru murmurs a curse under his breath and turns around.

"Then we better find them before they can cause any troubles."

It took the three a while to get out of the labyrinth and when they did, Tsugaru was nowhere in sight.

Shizuo raised an eyebrow in confusion. "Now where the hell did that guy went off to now?"

"We'll worry about him later. For now," Izaya turned to Dignity Gale, "if you will do the honors, Gale-chan."

Dignity Gale gazed at Izaya for a bit, before she turned her attention to the white building. She merely grinned and raised her right hand up in the air. "Time to demonstrate what I can do, it seems."

The chakrams begin to float separately around her. All ten chakrams surround her in a circular motion, and begin to spin rapidly. She then points at the white building and the chakrams flew at the building. They watched as the chakrams surround the building and begin to cut the black vines. Their jagged edges slicing the vines like they were just tissue. The chakrams then begin to spin even faster, causing a gust of wind to surround the building and almost creating a miniature sized cyclone around it. Shizuo and Izaya shield their eyes when debris of the vines began to fly all over the place. When Dignity Gale seemed satisfy with her work, she snaps her fingers. And just like that, the chakrams cease their spinning and returned to her side to form her deadly wings.

She turns to the two men and bows. "My part is now over. I do hope the two of you will manage to find Mikado-sama." She says and walks away from them.

Once Dignity Gale was gone, the paladin and rogue turned their attention to the building. The vines no longer beset the building. What remain of the vines were nothing more than shredded pieces. The two then turned to each other and nodded. Shizuo and Izaya hurriedly dash into the building, hoping that whoever they were chasing before, hadn't gone too far.

When they entered the building, the entranceway they entered into was dimly lit. The only sources of light in the entranceway were several yellow candles. The candles held a tiny orange flame that couldn't even illuminate the areas they were positioned in. Photos were scattered about on the floor. Izaya picked up one of the photos that was closest to him, and looked at it.

The photo he picked up had Mikado, Shizuo, and him standing in front of a shrine. Mikado looked to be about 4 years old, while he and Shizuo were 12 years old. All three of them had on a yukata. Mikado's yukata was a light blue color with embroidered cranes and purple obi. Little Izaya had on a red yukata with a black obi to go with the red. Last but not least, little Shizuo had on a yellow yukata with a green obi.

'Ah…I remember this. This is when we went to a summer festival that one year.' Izaya shook his head. No, he shouldn't dwell right, especially when they had to find Mikado. He laid the photo down onto one of the tables in the entranceway.

"Come on Shizu-chan, we should hurry." He turned to Shizuo and saw the fake blond holding several photos. Shizuo turned to Izaya and nodded, then he too put the photos he had onto a table.

As they scurry away, one of the candles on the floor glowed brighter. As it got brighter, it revealed blood stains on the floor…

"Halt!" Hibiya yelled as he spotted a white figure.

Hibiya was in the labyrinth since Dignity Gale informed him moments ago that she saw someone other than the divers in it. As he runs toward the white figure, it looked as if the figure turned around to him. Suddenly, Hibiya felt something shift in the air. Before he knew it, the gray mist around him slowly disperse. He looked up and saw that the white figure had also disappeared along with the mist. The only thing that hadn't change were the buildings.

"Hmph." Hibiya couldn't sense the personality anymore. However he can still sense the other personality roaming around the level. He should rendezvous with Tsugaru to catch the other personality.

As Izaya and Shizuo exit the white building, they heard a loud splash in the distance. They looked in the direction of the splash and saw a blue European dragon hovering above a cliff. Riding the dragon was a figure wearing a black cloak. The cloaked figure glanced at the two for a brief moment. Underneath the hood of the cloak, they saw a pair of sapphire eyes. But that was all they saw before the figure averted their eyes away from them.

Shizuo and Izaya look down onto the cliff, to see Tsugaru. Tsugaru glanced down the cliff and up at the dragon. He had a panicked expression on his face, and seemed not to know what to do. In a panic, he turned around and saw Shizuo and Izaya.

"Mikado fell into the sea!" Tsugaru exclaimed, and they immediately knew what he meant. Before they could yell something out, the blue dragon began to fly away. Tsugaru turned to the dragon and flew after it in pursuit.

The two didn't questioned why Tsugaru was flying, for there was a more important matter to attend to right now.

They ran up to the cliff and looked down. Below the cliff, dark water waves were crashing against the cliff side and drifting idly along the waves was slivery sea foam, and there also didn't seemed to be any sharp rocks in the water. However, among the water and sea foam, there was something glimmering underneath the water. The small light got dimmer and dimmer as it descend down into the depths of water.

Shizuo lets out a curse and begins to take off his shoes and socks. As Izaya took off his jacket, Shizuo leaped into the water ahead of him. Izaya narrows his auburn eyes downwards at the remnants of a ripple in the dark water.

"Show off," he grumbles as he takes off his shoes and socks. Once he removed the articles of footwear off, he too leaped into the dark water.

When Izaya dived into the water, he looked down to see Shizuo swimming toward the tiny light. Izaya glances around to see if there would be any unexpected surprises. However, all he could see was dark shades of blue and black. Visibility in the water wasn't bad but the darkness of the water made it seem more like an endless abyss than a sea. Izaya shakes his head and begins to follow after the small light with Shizuo taking the lead ahead of him. As they were swimming toward the small light, it gradually got brighter and brighter as they were approaching it. When they got to the light, their eyes widened at what they saw.

The person that Shizuo saw earlier was indeed, Mikado. Mikado however, was unconscious and chains bound his body. Hovering over Mikado was a glowing bluish white miniature-size dragon. The dragon had sleek bluish white feathers, white feathered wings with sky blue tips, and the end of its tail was bushy with a black tip. The tiny dragon looked worried as it continuously floated around Mikado like a loyal familiar.

Without any hesitation, Shizuo swims toward Mikado and seizes the chains. He easily snaps the first link of chains and moves on to the next link. While Shizuo was busy with the chains, Izaya swam down and goes behind Mikado. The raven haired man grabbed hold of Mikado by circling the young boy's chest. Once Shizuo snapped some of the chain links, the rest of the links easily slid off of Mikado. The chain then slump down into the dark water.

While this was all happening, the bluish white dragon just stared at them. When the glowing dragon first saw the two, it was about to bite the blond man's nose for approaching Mikado, but stopped when the blond began to break the chains. And then the one with raven black hair grabbed Mikado as if he was a precious treasure. The small dragon lands on Izaya's left shoulder. From what the dragon could tell, these two men didn't show any hostilely toward Mikado; it had decided that the two were friendly. The rogue turned his head towards the small dragon that had just landed on his left shoulder.

Izaya then begins to swim upward to the surface. Swimming behind him was Shizuo, who was making sure Izaya doesn't let of Mikado. It wasn't until a few seconds later that they emerged from the watery depths.

Shizuo scans the area and sees a coastline to the northeast of them. Shizuo taps Izaya's right shoulder and points his finger in the direction of the coastline. Izaya nodded and the two began to swim toward the coastline. The small glowing dragon gets off of Izaya's left shoulder to fly around them. As it hovers around them, the light that it was giving off was a great assist in helping them see in the dark. Once they were at the coastline, Izaya hauls Mikado up onto the shore. The informant pulls Mikado away from the shoreline, just far enough to get away from the water, and lets go. When he did this, the small dragon lands down by Mikado's head. He then got down on his knees to check Mikado's condition.

While Izaya was examining Mikado, Shizuo kneels down and looks at Mikado. Mikado was wearing the Raira academy uniform with a cobalt blue necktie. Both the uniform and its wearer were soaking wet to the bone. Just when Shizuo was going to scrutinize Mikado some more, the bluish white dragon suddenly yelps. Shizuo eyes widened at what Izaya was doing to Mikado.

He was kissing Mikado.

Izaya's and Mikado's lips were interlocking. He just stared at them in shock. The paladin snapped out of his stupor a few seconds later. Just when he was to march up to Izaya to punch him, the informant pulls away from Mikado's lips and pushes going down on the young boy's chest. Ah…

Could it be that Izaya was giving Mikado CPR? Oh…he suddenly felt incredibly dumb now.

Just as Izaya was going to open Mikado's mouth again, Mikado suddenly coughed. Shizuo and Izaya look down at Mikado as he coughed out water and spit. The young male stopped coughing and slowly open his eyes.

Izaya looks at Shizuo with a slightly smug expression as if pleased of what he just did. Shizuo glared at the flea like he was a blood sucking leech instead. The paladin was trying his best not to punch the flea's face. One of his hands clenched in frustration while his left eye twitched.

'Note to self, beat the hell out of Izaya tomorrow,' Shizuo thought to himself. The fake blond then turns his attention to Mikado, his expression soften as Mikado fully opened his eyes.

Sapphire eyes stared up at the navy blue sky. Bright 1's and 0's were flashing across the sky as Mikado squinted his eyes. As soon as his vision was focused, he gazed up at Shizuo and Izaya.

"Izaya…Shizuo..?" Mikado muttered softly.

The two older males sighed in relief. Shizuo then glares at Izaya. "What the hell was that for?"

"What do you mean, Shizu-chan?" Izaya smirked as Shizuo narrowed his eyes at him.

"The kiss!"

"Oh, you mean that? I was merely giving Mikado CPR."

Before they could even begin to argue, the small glowing dragon nuzzles Mikado's face. Mikado responded to the small dragon's affections by petting it. "Koryuu..."

As he continued to pet the dragon, Mikado shifts his attention to Shizuo and Izaya. The sapphire eyed boy didn't know what to say to them. His throat felt extremely dry. He shivered a bit when he felt the sea breeze hit them. A few minutes passed, and he finally found the courage to speak.

"I'm sorry that I've been avoiding you two…" Mikado swallows his own saliva to keep his throat from becoming parch. "I guess I was…afraid in a sense to meet the both of you. I didn't know how to react when I saw the both of you."

Shizuo and Izaya continued to stare at Mikado, so the sapphire eyed boy took it as a sign to continue.

"I'm afraid of losing anyone precious to me. I almost lost Okaa-san because of what happened 10 years ago…"

'10 years ago?' If Izaya remembered correctly, it was 10 years ago that Mikado stopped visiting them. When they were in their pre-teens, they didn't know why Mikado stopped visiting them. What happened to Mikado 10 years ago? Izaya was curious, but he didn't want to risk triggering Mikado. Maybe they will find out as they progress through Mikado's Mental World? Izaya should probably stop musing over it for now because Mikado looked like a he was going to cry. A depressed Mikado didn't sit well with him at all. But before he could offer any words of comfort to Mikado, Shizuo beat him to it first.

"Well, all that matters is that the flea and I are here with you now, right?" Shizuo suddenly said and at that, Mikado and Izaya stared at the fake blond. Izaya raised an eyebrow at Shizuo as if to say 'That's all you're going to say?' and received a glare from the ex-bartender. The ex-bartender rolled his eyes a bit at Izaya before continuing, "What I mean is…how should I put it? Shouldn't you be enjoying the present and looking forward to the future?"

Mikado eyes slightly widened and Izaya blinked at Shizuo. "Wow, I didn't know that you were capable of saying something smart, Shizu-chan."

"Shut the hell up, flea," the two men then started to glare at each other.

When Mikado stopped petting Koryuu, the little dragon looked up at his master in cornered. Mikado stayed silent as if he was trying to process what Shizuo had just said. Then, without any warning, he chuckled. A soft sound that brought about nostalgia for the two older males. Shizuo and Izaya turn their attention to Mikado to see that the younger male was smiling. For Shizuo (despite not having the best memory in the world), it warmed his heart and brought a smile to his lips. And for Izaya, he too had the feeling as Shizuo when Mikado smiled and grins.

Mikado stopped chucking and seemed content. "Simple and straight to the point; that sounds so like Shizuo."

"Is that supposed to be a complement?" Shizuo asked with a teasing tone. Mikado shrugged but the smile still remained. Shizuo took that as a sign that Mikado wasn't down in the dumps anymore.

"What about me, Mikado-chan?" Izaya pouted, feeling a bit left out.

Mikado strokes Izaya's head. "I haven't forgotten about you, Izaya."

If they weren't in the Mental World, then Izaya would feel the full extent of Mikado's fingers in his hair. But strangely enough, he could indeed feel the sensation of Mikado's fingers in his hair. He could feel the soft touches of the young boy's fingers through his hair. Izaya knew he was smiling and that Shizuo was scowling at him, but he didn't give a shit. Mikado's touches were just too good! Unfortunately for Izaya, Mikado withdraws his hand from the informant's head.

"I guess I'm not really alone, after all. I'm not in a house filled with large rooms and silence. I'm now living in a city that is filled to the brim with excitement and noise. Not only that, but I'm also with you two again." Mikado gazed at them, his sapphire eyes almost shone with radiance. "Thank you for reminding of that, and I will definitely look forward to the future."

As if to reflect Mikado's mood, the level suddenly changed. The navy blue sky was now returning to its azure color and the 0's and 1's shine were now dulling to blend in with the now azure colored sky. And the city buildings from the distant that they were at, were returning to their normal size. Koryuu's glow also dulled down since it wasn't that dark anymore. However, that wasn't the only thing that happened. A bright pillar of blue and white light suddenly appeared. Izaya and Shizuo look up to see that the pillar of light wasn't far from them. Before they could get up and investigate, they heard someone walking towards them. The three males turned around and saw Tsugaru walking towards them from the shoreline holding a fur trimmed jacket and two pairs of shoes that had socks in them.

"I see that a Paradigm Shirt has been activated." Tsugaru said as he stopped a few inches from them and hands Shizuo and Izaya their shoes (and in Izaya's case, his jacket too).

"A Paradigm Shift?" Shizuo raised an eyebrow as he puts on his socks and shoes.

"A Paradigm Shift happens when a Songstress spiritual level has grown. By entering the light, Mikado's spiritual level will advance each time he enters the Paradigm Shift." Tsugaru looks up at the pillar of light. "Better hurry before it disappears."

Shizuo was the first to finish putting on his socks and shoes. After he had put on his last shoe, the paladin picked Mikado up bridal style. Mikado squeaks in surprise at being suddenly carried by Shizuo.

"I can walk by myself, Shizuo." Mikado said as he fidgeted in Shizuo's arms.

"Can't be too sure." Shizuo replied and tighten his hold on Mikado.

"I want to carry Mikado, Shizu-chan~!" Izaya whined as he was putting on his fur trimmed jacket.

Shizuo glared at Izaya. "Hell no,"

"Oh, come on~!"

"No!"

As they walked away from the beach, the two older males begin to bicker. Mikado stayed silent as if deciding whether or not he should laugh or sweatdrop at the bickering men. When the three were out of Tsugaru's line of sight, Hibiya appeared behind him. Koryuu flew to Hibiya and settled on the prince's right shoulder.

"What happen to the level 6 personality?" Hibiya inquired as he lightly stroked Koryuu's chin.

"Got away before I could catch him." Tsugaru merely replied as he took an inhale from his kiseru pipe.

It didn't take them long to reach the pillar of light. When they reached the pillar of light, they were greeted with a large circular pond and two cherry blossom trees that were placed by the sides of the pond. The pond was filled with pristine blue water that had lotus flowers floating on surface. Cherry blossom petals fell from the two trees and dance in the air as they descend down into the pond. The place itself had this really serene feeling to it, the moment that they had stepped into the area.

Mikado looks up and sees the pillar of blue and white light in the center of the pond. Mikado lightly tugs Shizuo's white dress shirt. "You can put me down now, Shizuo."

Shizuo gazed down at Mikado before he nods and puts him down. Once Mikado was put down, he saunters toward the pond. Shizuo and Izaya watched as their eyes widened a bit when Mikado stepped into the water. Instead of sinking into the water, the sapphire eyed boy was walking on the surface of the water. Just as Mikado was going to enter the pillar of light, he turned to the two men and flashed them a smile.

"I'll see you two in the next level." Mikado said and waved his hand as he entered the pillar of light. For a brief moment, there was a blinding light that lasted for five seconds before it disappeared. When the light died down, the blue and white pillar of light was gone.

"Well, now what?" Shizuo asked. Before Izaya could speak, two doors suddenly appeared before them in front of the pond.

The door to the left was white and had a stained glass window that looked like the lobby that they were in before when they enter Mikado's Mental World. The door to right however, was different. The door was lavender colored with a stained glass design of a fantasy-like city with a castle behind the city. It was hard to tell what the castle looked like, since it was a bit small compare to the city in the stained glass pane. And it was also glowing.

"This is a bit of a surprise." Tsugaru commented as he suddenly appeared behind them.

Shizuo and Izaya almost flinched at Tsugaru's sudden appearance since the Mind Guardian was just at the beach a few minutes ago.

"I do say Tsu-chan, how do you do that?" Izaya inquired, a bit curious as to why Tsugaru would appear out of nowhere at convenient times.

"Teleportation. One of the quirks of being a Mind Guardian." Tsugaru replied and gazed at the two doors. "It seems that Mikado wants the two of you to process to the next level. This usually doesn't happen when a diver enters the Mental World for the first time."

"Are you saying that Mikado wants us to go deeper into his Mental World?" Izaya hypothesized.

Tsugaru nodded and dug into one of his kimono sleeves to pull out a key. The key he had pulled out of his sleeve was a bronze key with a crown shaped head that was adorned with amethysts. Etched onto its shaft were different music notes.

"Now what do you two want to do? Return to the real world, or proceed to the next level?"

Chapter 10 end

Celestial Reyvateil: Once again, I would like to say that I'm sorry that this update was late. Good news is that while writing up this chapter, I also wrote a bit of chapter 11. So hopefully next chapter won't be as late as this chapter was. I would also like to thank you guys for being so patience with this fanfic and I hope to update more in the future. There will be more information on how the Mental World works in future chapters and I will also explain a bit of the Mental World if in those chapters too. Anyways, I put a good amount of foreshadowing in this chapter, so I wonder if anyone can spot all of them.