All characters are owned by Hoshino Katsura.
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~June 6th, 03:29
"That didn't go over very well, did it?"
Kanda ignored the officer and sat down on a nearby bench, growling in frustration. Said officer sighed in exasperation and looked towards the museum taped off merely an hour ago. The both of them were tired after a long night spent in waiting, and when all was said and done their efforts were rendered useless.
"Kid, you know the Superintendent is going to have our heads for this, right?" Kanda muttered. "This might've been our only chance to get Silvertongue. He's probably headed for another city right now."
"Like I said, my name is Allen Walker," Allen mumbled. "And you don't know that. He's been hanging around the city for months now. No one knows what's in his agenda, but I don't think he's leaving any time soon. Probably because he's found some really attractive people to chat with."
Kanda snorted and waved the rookie away. He needed to clear his head. Failure rarely ever favoured the Inspector's company, and when it did it wasn't welcome. He'd had a week since the last tip to make sure he could catch the thief, but even then he couldn't even catch a glimpse of the criminal. Just how did he manage to slip past each and every one of their defenses every single time?
Sighing, he stood up and walked to the front of the museum where the others were milling about, some as irritated as he was while the rest were just too tired to care at this point. He dismissed them and told them to get as much rest as they could. At this point, they could only hope that the thief in question didn't have anything up his sleeve for the next day.
They cleared the area, and by the time they were done only two people remained. The Inspector was asked by the Superintendent to stay for a moment longer. Harbouring an uneasy feeling, Kanda agreed and so there they were.
"What is it, sir?" Kanda asked, trying to keep the irritation out of his voice to no avail. The Superintendent chuckled and clapped a firm hand on his shoulder.
"You don't have to keep using my title, Kanda. Just call me Komui, like everyone else," he began, giving him a faint smile. Kanda noted that Komui looked just as harrowed as the rest of them, but knowing him he was probably covering it up and it was more likely that it was bordering on extreme exhaustion. "You look tired. You should take the day off tomorrow."
At that, Kanda's head snapped up. "What? Why? I'm perfectly fine and we-"
"You've been working yourself to death since he came around," Komui interrupted. He turned a rueful glance towards the museum and slipped his hands into the pockets of his coat. "But I have a feeling we won't be hearing from him for a while. If it helps, stay on stand-by and I'll call you up if we need anything. You've more than earned your rest."
Kanda's frown deepened but he nodded and thanked his superior. Turning, he headed back towards his apartment. Unbeknownst to the long-haired man, the criminal was still on the scene and watching him curiously. Silvertongue's voice gently parted the silence of the night.
"Haven't figured it out yet, huh? I'll just have to help you out with that then, don't I?"
~June 6th, 10:54
Upon hearing his phone ring, Kanda reached out to grab it and looked at the caller ID to see who it was. Grumbling, he placed the phone back and turned over in his bed, pulling the covers over his head and trying to nab a few more hours of sleep. Whoever was calling, however, had other plans and the phone rang for a few more minutes before an irritated Inspector picked up and growled into the receiver. "What the hell do you want from me?"
"Geez, and here I was thinking you were a workaholic," the voice from the other end chirped. "You got a day off or something, Yu?"
"Lavi, don't call me that. Now, cut the crap and get it over with so I can go back to sleep. Last night was a little too long for my liking," the man mumbled, running a hand over his face tiredly. Just because the guy on the other end was a veritable source of information didn't mean that he had any more patience with him than he did anyone else. He had the entire police force's phone numbers memorized with that freaky memory of his, but he opted to call only Kanda.
"Alright, alright. Sheesh, would it kill you to say thanks every once in a while?" Lavi's laugh was easy, light-hearted, happy. It almost made Kanda want to smile, but the events of last night had dampened his mood considerably. "So, I got another tip from someone. Wanna hear it?"
"Spill," Kanda immediately answered. If it had anything to do with the elusive criminal that was wanted in over ten different countries, he wanted to know. Even the slightest bit of information about them would be enough for the seemingly overachieving Inspector.
"I will," Lavi snickered, "if you'll go on a date with me."
Upon hearing this, Kanda merely snorted and almost hung up on him. But something made him stay on the line and rethink his decision to leave the overly energetic red head on his own. "Fine, where to?" he asked.
"Wait, what?" Kanda almost laughed at Lavi's surprised tone. "You're not just saying that to make fun of me, right?"
"No, I'm dead serious. Now tell me when and where we're going or the deal's off," Kanda warned, trying not to fall in line with the red head's giddiness. Not long after, he found himself smiling. He always complained about Lavi's annoying habits and childish antics, but he ended up finding them amusing as well. And although he would never openly admit to it, they were also very endearing.
Standing up, he walked to the kitchen to get a drink of water and noticed a slip of paper under his door. Frowning, he crouched down to pick it up and studied it. Scrawled on the small piece of paper was the name of a certain precious artifact and a time. The Ambassador's Gift, 23:00. Fine, so he'd have a bit of work to do later that day. He could use his date/meeting with Lavi as his cover since they were going to a restaurant in the area and catch Silvertongue in the act assuming the person who slipped the note under the door and the criminal were one in the same.
He smirked and figured that he'd have to call up the rest of the division to tell them about it, but the second he flipped the piece of paper over he stopped breathing.
Happy birthday, Yu.
He had to read the words several times before it would finally register in his mind that whoever he was dealing with was a lot more clever than he'd given them credit for. If he showed the division this note, he'd be jeopardizing his own innocence because this meant he knew this person and this person knew him very well. He was on his own for this one.
~June 6th, 22:25
Despite his efforts in not getting caught up in the moment, Kanda had to admit that he was enjoying himself. He hadn't had a day off in a long while, so finally being able to relax was a good change of pace for him.
They'd reached the restaurant at the appointed time and spent a few hours there, casually conversing with each other. It was even stranger that Lavi wasn't trying anything on him. He was acting decent, almost normal. In the few months that he'd known the red head, he was sure he had his character down but he immediately took it back and realized there was more depth to this person than he had initially thought.
After Kanda finished his coffee, the two of them walked out of the restaurant and Lavi suggested they head towards a small park in the direction of the building that housed the Ambassador's Gift to which Kanda agreed since it would make it easier for him to reach his objective. Every once in a while, Kanda would check the time to make sure he hadn't missed it but this was more out of worry than anything. This could be his only chance to catch the thief, after all.
"Hey, Yu?" Lavi began, but an annoyed look silenced him.
"I told you not to call me that, baka," he huffed.
"Alright, alright. You didn't have to insult me," Lavi laughed. When Kanda gave him a surprised look, he shrugged nonchalantly. "I know a bit of Japanese, or at least enough to know that you just called me an idiot."
Kanda quirked an eyebrow at the taller man and smirked. Now that was a pleasant surprise. "Yoku yatta, usagi," he said, testing the man on how well he could speak his native language.
"Arigatou, Yu-tan," Lavi snickered, barely flinching under the glare from the Inspector. "I'm not even gonna ask you about why you're giving me weird nicknames, never mind why you'd pick 'rabbit'. Anyway, remember that tip I told you about earlier today?"
Kanda nodded, urging him to go on with a wave of his hand. He was hoping that it would confirm the information that he'd gleaned from the note earlier today.
"Someone told me Silvertongue was about to steal the Ambassador's Gift at 11:00 pm sharp. That's why I wanted to come to this park," Lavi explained, walking up to the large, wooden double doors of a small building and producing a key from his pocket. "I told the curator of the small museum here that I worked with the police and they gave me the spare key so that I could check in on it."
"I knew it," Kanda responded. Lavi threw him a surprised look and Kanda offered him the small piece of paper that he'd been holding on to. "Someone slipped this under my door earlier."
"Did you tell anyone?" Lavi asked, a worried tone creeping into his voice as he handed the paper back to Kanda.
"No, I didn't. If I did, they'd ask me if I had any evidence. If I gave this to them, they'd have to put me down as a suspect and I don't need that. If I lied about it and they found out, I would've been thrown into a cell for giving false information to law enforcement. Either way, it would've ended badly."
"Good, that means they won't get into Silvertongue's way. He won't be suspicious when he comes around to take the Gift and we can nab him then."
They silently walked through the building towards the back where the object of interest was being held on display. A thought was beginning to nag at Kanda and it finally dawned on him that he was only going to get an answer if he asked. "So, was this date just a way to get me to come with you to protect the Gift?" Kanda asked, following the red head. Lavi laughed and turned to look at him. Kanda had never seen that look before and it threw him off for a moment. "What? Why are you laughing?"
"I was thinking of asking you the same thing," he confessed, scratching the back of his head sheepishly. "Tell you what, if you tell me what your thoughts on it were then I'll tell you mine."
"At first I only saw it as a cover," Kanda began. Lavi's face fell a bit and Kanda sighed. Turning away so that his friend couldn't see the blush creeping into his cheeks – Thank God it's dark in here, he thought – he continued. "The more time I spent with you, however, the more I found myself thinking it was a date. There, happy?"
Lavi chuckled when Kanda reverted to his usual brusque self. He turned and began to walk in the direction of the Ambassador's Gift again, but Kanda knew from spending so much time with him in the past few months that he had that stupid grin on his face, the one he'd grown to expect and love. After a moment of silence, Lavi replied with, "I only ever saw it as a date."
Kanda stared at the back of the man he'd met mere months ago and marveled at how quickly things changed; it had happened as swiftly as a turn of a knife. Taking a deep breath to calm his nerves which were suddenly screaming with a newfound energy, he continued to follow Lavi into the darker recesses of the older museum. He figured it was just an adrenaline shot from knowing it was almost 11 o'clock.
They strolled up to the case that held the Ambassador's Gift and Kanda couldn't help but stare in awe. He'd always heard of the piece of art but never bothered coming to the museum to see it. It gave him a whole new appreciation for the time and effort artists put into their work.
"Beautiful isn't it?" Lavi breathed. He placed his hand gingerly on the glass case. "The finest of details carved into a piece of Dragon's Breath Fire Opal about the size of your hand. No one knows who created it or why, but that person is respected as one of the most skilled craftsmen in human history. Back when it was first discovered thousands of years ago by a tribe that lived near this area, it was so rich in its particulars that it was mistaken for a Phoenix feather and they held it in high regard. They called it "The Unending Blaze" in their language. Legend has it that when foreigners tried to invade their land, a shaman was able to conjure a flaming spirit from within the stone and it ravaged entire forests before cooling its rage and returning to its feather-shaped stone. Needless to say, no one ever tried to call upon the spirit again. Hundreds of years back, the mayor of our city finally made peace with the tribe. Their leader, who also acted as the tribe's envoy, presented him with The Unending Blaze and it was renamed the Ambassador's Gift in his honour and, in my opinion, so that they didn't offend them by accidentally mispronouncing the name." Lavi dropped his hand and turned back to Kanda, a strange glint in his eye. "Hey, Yu? What time is it?"
Kanda was silent throughout all of this. The gears had suddenly begun to tick in his mind as he listened to Lavi recall the legend and history behind the object of interest and he took a step back from the man, hand on the gun he'd hidden under his coat. Gritting his teeth, he glared at the red head. "You bastard."
Lavi frowned, but just as abruptly a strange smile broke out onto his face and he crossed his arms in front of him defiantly. "Finally figure it out? You're definitely more than just a pretty face, aren't you?"
"Don't give me that shit, Silvertongue!" Kanda raged, pointing the gun at the red head's chest and flicking the safety off.
"What? Can't handle someone poking a bit of fun at you? C'mon, love. Think this through before you kill me," Lavi smiled slyly.
And he did. Kanda realized how badly he'd screwed up for not realizing any of this sooner. If he'd found out yesterday, he wouldn't be in such a compromising position and none of this would've been happening.
"That's right," Lavi lilted while walking towards Kanda. The latter matched his steps to keep the distance between them. "I'm the infamous Silvertongue. You should've noticed that the only person that was telling you anything about the heists was me, plus I'm the only one that ever calls you by your given name."
"You came in months ago, looking for a job and we gave you one because we thought you were an upstart talent with that memory of yours," Kanda growled. "You're the only one who would remember that my birthday was today. I've never told anyone else."
"I knew about you long before. See, I accidentally took a peek at your criminal records a little while back," Lavi chuckled, enjoying the shocked expression on Kanda's face. "Have you ever wondered why I'd been chasing you around? The people in your division might not know about your hidden abilities, but I do. It's not just because I think you're attractive."
"This is twisted. You think I'm gonna join hands with you and help you steal whatever you've got your eye on because you can blackmail me? I don't think so!" Kanda retorted.
"Oh, no? Then maybe if they ever get here I'll tell them all about how you've been catching criminals at large so that they'll keep their eyes on them instead of the one sneaking around behind their backs. You've been stealing from the thieves that you've caught, haven't you? That's why they always wind up incapacitated or dead and unable to speak. It's so that they can't spill the beans about your true motive for joining the police force." At that, Kanda dropped the gun and gained a newfound respect for Silvertongue. He hadn't expect him to find out about his true intentions as quickly as that.
"Damn you, Lavi. I was thinking about telling you after I'd snitched the Gift but it looks like that's not happening," Kanda smirked, putting the gun away and walking up to the case. He looked at his watch and found that it was a minute to the appointed time. "Well, since you've given me no other choice I might as well help you out with this one. I don't need the cops catching me."
Lavi smiled and brought out his own gun, smashing the glass case with it. An alarm began to sound within the building and Lavi gingerly picked up the Ambassador's Gift, gazing at it with wonder. Kanda waited impatiently for Lavi to finish with his appraisal so that they could ditch, but suddenly the artifact was thrust into his possession and a strong arm was wrapped around his waist, pulling him closer to the red head.
"What the hell are you doing?" Kanda asked rather calmly, wrapping his free arm around the red head's neck. Lavi didn't say a word, he just dipped his head down and kissed the soon-to-be-former Inspector, their hands curling around the precious stone.
At that moment, the police in charge of the area stormed in. Komui, who was heading the group with his gun ready to fire, was momentarily dazed when he saw the Inspector and lowered the gun. "Kanda? What are you doing here?"
Just as stunned as the Superintendent, Kanda pulled away from Lavi and stared at the numerous death-barrels that were pointed at him. He turned to Lavi for an explanation and, with a shrug, his partner gave one. "It was a fail-safe in case you didn't want to cooperate. Keeps you from thinking of a second attempt at keeping your false innocence, too. I didn't want that happening."
Kanda's eyes widened in surprise and he realized their hands were still wrapped around their objective. Reaching his hand up to his lips, his cheeks were graced by a dark shade of red.
"You thinking about the kiss?" Lavi asked. "I didn't see you trying to fight me off. I can steal more than just precious artifacts, love." Kanda merely snorted in derision, finding that last comment to be a little too corny. But that had been his aim all the while, hadn't it?
By then, Komui had regained control of himself and figured out what was going on. He seethed with a newfound ire and this time he didn't hesitate to point his weapon at the person that had once been his subordinate, that he had thought would be working towards the same cause. "You're under arrest. You" – he nodded at Silvertongue – "and the traitor over there."
"Well, time to split," Lavi quipped. Slipping the Ambassador's Gift into his pocket, he grabbed Kanda's hand and dragged him towards the nearest window. The police force inside did nothing to stop them for fear that they would damage the precious articles that remained within the museum, but the troops stationed outside opened fire the second they saw them.
They hurriedly ducked into some bushes and waited until the gunfire died down. Before Kanda could utter another word, Lavi held a finger to his lips and looked off into the distance. Moments later, the unsuspecting police crews were bombarded by television broadcasters, news reporters, and civilians. They hadn't been prepared for such an influx of people and, thus, were trying to organize themselves as best they could while sparing some troops to handle the search for the criminals. The thieves carefully crept out of the bushes and, soon, were out in the open with no one on their tail.
"You thought of just about everything," Kanda grumbled. "You outsmart me twice and you figure out a way to distract the cops."
Lavi chuckled. "Yeah, I'm pretty good, aren't I?" Kanda quirked an eyebrow, but said nothing.
For a while, they walked in silence. Eventually, they ended up back at Kanda's apartment and still no one was trying to capture them. But that wouldn't last long and the former Inspector knew it well. He'd have to get out of the city before they put up measures to stop him and Lavi from leaving.
"So, now they know who you are," Kanda drawled. "And now that they know who I am, it's not likely that they'll let me back in."
"If anything, you're as wanted as I am now. Them knowing who we are might make things a little more challenging, but that shouldn't be too hard to get around with our skills. If you're still willing to work with me," Lavi added rather quietly. He shuffled his feet back and forth and Kanda laughed. The red head gave him an insulted look. "You didn't have to make the idea sound so ridiculous."
"That's not what I'm laughing about," Kanda giggled, not knowing where it came from but not being able to help it. "I've never seen you act nervous about something."
The affronted mask was quickly swapped with one of embarrassment and he scratched the back of his head shyly. "Yeah, well, I've never asked anyone to tag along with me, alright? This is kinda new for me."
Shaking his head, Kanda reached up and pulled Lavi in for a kiss, this one longer than the first. Lavi's lips curled into a smile and he wrapped his arms around the Japanese man's waist. Once they parted that smile had turned into a sly and mischievous look and Kanda rolled his eyes.
"So, I take that as a yes?" Lavi asked, hopeful.
"What do you think?" Kanda retorted, turning to walk into his apartment complex. "The airport, 0600 hours. Don't be late or I'm leaving without you."
"Works for me," the red head replied with his trademark grin.
Just before his new partner disappeared into the darkness of the building, he called out, "One more thing!"
Kanda turned around and caught what was thrown at him. He stared at the Ambassador's Gift that was now in his possession. Looking back up at Lavi, the former Inspector gave him a confused look to which the red head simply responded with: "Happy birthday, Yu."
As Kanda watched him walk away, he checked his watch and smiled. "Arigatou, Lavi."
~June 7th, 00:00