Neuro went to Yako's graduation party in disguise and led her outside. Now that they're alone, what will Neuro do to get her back?

A Push in the right Direction

Mystery 38: The Dance of Deception

Neuro wasn't planning to reveal his identity, he wasn't planning anything, he had gone to the party in the rush of the moment and his plan had already ended. He knew what he would do to blend in, he knew what he would do to keep his real identity a secret, he knew what he would do to get Yako away from the crowd, and that was it, he didn't plan anything beyond that. He didn't think he needed a plan, though now that he thought about it, charming a human could be complicated. It seemed that he was far from making Yako beg for his attention like he wanted; the stupid little bug didn't realize what an honor she was granted by the opportunity of being with him.

Without a word, Neuro hugged Yako, causing a little surprised yelp to escape her. It wasn't like he was crushing her, though the temptation was strong, and humans were supposed to like gentle hugs. "Um... excuse me, should we dance, or something?" Yako suggested.

"Yes, let's dance," Neuro mentally kicked himself for not planning this further. It wasn't like him to be so unprepared and he blamed his haste on Yako. Regardless of that, he had observed human dances enough to know how to dance, though apparently Yako had not, because she stepped on his feet quite often and if not because she was a slug with a single cell brain, he would think it was on purpose, but he attributed it to clumsy stupidity instead of malice from knowing who he was, she couldn't have figured it out.

Yako finally became comfortable dancing with the handsome stranger who felt so familiar when he held her close. His scent and expression also tugged at an unknown memory, but his image didn't match any of the pictures of her past. Even so, when it came to a certain someone, anything was possible and with a theory in mind, Yako smiled.

As the slow song ended, Neuro got an idea, it was about time his genius brain decided to jump start. "Are you hungry? I'll take you to a nice restaurant." Surely this was the perfect way to charm Yako; Neuro wouldn't have to bother with anything else.

Yako's eyes lit up and her mouth watered, "I would," she paused, if her theory was correct then she shouldn't be eating what he gave her, "I would like to go back inside and dance."

Neuro's jaw dropped, his eyes went wide behind the mask and it took him a moment to compose himself, "are you sure?"

"Yes," Yako forced herself to nod. She wanted food, but if her mystery man was Neuro, despite the lack of sharp teeth and glowing emerald eyes, then she was better off making sure he didn't feed her something like the essence of lust, or another similar thing that would make her irresistible instinct take him back, despite her firm disposition of teaching him a lesson.

"Very well, as you wish," on the outside Neuro smiled and on the inside he felt like kicking himself for following Yako around as if she were the master, the thought of which was unacceptable.

Yako spotted Kanae and Higuchi dancing, she had forgotten about him when she focused on her theories about her mystery man. Maybe he wasn't Neuro despite the similar expression, albeit in a slightly different face. But his scent and the shape of his body was a perfect copy of Neuro. It could be a coincidence, but either way, it was best not to upset Higuchi by being seen, thus Yako hoped Kanae would keep him busy and snuck off to the other side of the large room.

Graduates passed by, looking at the dancing couple and wondering who that man was. They had seen him before, standing to the side with another unknown man who had since disappeared. They didn't dance with anyone, despite having received several requests, especially that one, who danced for the first time with Kanae, then disappeared and returned to dance with Yako.

Some wondered where Yako's assistant was. The public opinion, lacking certain memories, was unsure if they were a couple or not, though the main rumor was they broke up. The talk surrounding Yako, after people's memories were erased, shifted from the drama of the now forgotten baby to her upcoming career, everyone expected her to become a fulltime detective after she graduated.

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Eventually, Yako gave into the temptation of food and snuck out of the party, accepting the masked man's invitation, despite being told over and over in the past not to take food from strangers. She glanced at Kanae and Higuchi who were talking, Kanae pointed to some decorations and when Higuchi looked at them, she gave Yako a thumbs up, as if to communicate she had noticed her since she came back inside. Yako smiled and returned the gesture, then left with the mystery man.

The car was not the same one Neuro had, he claimed that if a human could drive he could do it too and got a false license with some help from Godai's connections. Yako felt uneasy as she questioned her theory. Maybe it was just wishful thinking that made her believe this was Neuro, maybe she was getting herself into trouble from which Neuro wasn't there to save her, or maybe this man was actually nice and she should give him a chance, yet her thoughts remained conflicted.

They arrived at a fancy restaurant and from that point on, Yako could think of nothing but food. Neuro did consider the possibility of slipping something into her food, but decided against it. He began to see this bizarre human ritual as a challenge that would, not only make him understand the human mind better and thus cause him to further enjoy devouring their mysteries, also he would prove his greatness to his slave and she would come crawling back to him beginning for attention, or at least that was the effect Neuro was hoping for.

After the meal was finally done, which took several hours, Neuro paid with a credit card, which he made sure Yako could see, confirming that it was not Godai's, which Neuro usually used. By the name on the card Yako learned that her admirer was called Jigoku Kamen.

xoxox xox xoxox

Feeling confused, but satisfied with the meal, Yako was taken home, Mr. Kamen knew exactly where she lived, a fact she did not question, a lot of people knew where she lived. "Thank you..." Yako stood at her door, having decided that she would not invite the mystery man to come in. It looked as if her theory about him being Neuro was incorrect, but she wasn't fully convinced yet. "Will I see you again soon?" Yako inquired.

"We can go out tomorrow; we could spend the entire day together." Yako wanted to see him again; Neuro took it as good progress. She would be at his feet in no time.

"Let's go out in the evening, mom is leaving in the afternoon, she offered to take me along but I want to stay here for now. I want to spend the morning with her and see her off at the airport."

"As you wish," Neuro could not get used to saying such things, but it was all for a good purpose, imagining Yako begging her beloved master to honor her with as much as a glance would be priceless.

"Um... well..." Yako stood on her tiptoes and reached towards his face. Neuro assumed she wanted a kiss and decided to humor her, though a part of him was also angry that she was kissing a mystery man whom she had apparently no way of knowing was truly her master. However, as soon as Neuro's face was within Yako's reach, she proved his theory wrong by removing his mask. "I just wanted to see your face," she quickly clarified. "Your eyes..."

Neuro was careful with his disguise, his eyes had been a stunning violet with the mask, a rare color for a human, without it they were a deep shade of blue, thanks to a pair of contact lenses, it was a more common color.

Yako stared at the man's eyes, which were not green or glowing. He moved closer as if to kiss her, then she stepped back and with a hasty, "thanks again, see you tomorrow," then she shut the door on his face, hitting him on the nose.

Neuro touched his nose, though no damage had occurred given his nature, albeit a normal human's nose would have been broken. He felt oddly satisfied that Yako had decided against kissing Mr. Kamen, and swiftly left, heading back to the detective office.

In her apartment, Yako leaned against the closed door and contemplated the mask she still held, she was in such a hurry to get away from Mr. Kamen and have some time alone to clear her head that she didn't even return it. She missed Neuro, but if he wasn't even making an effort to win her back, then maybe he didn't really care. Perhaps she should try to move on with her life, but before she decided anything, she had to learn more about the mysterious Jigoku Kamen.

To be Continued

Disclaimer, I don't own Majin Tantei Nogami Neuro. I posted some fanart based on this story, there's a link to my fanart archive in my profile. More to come!