Vol. 3
Ch. 6
Break Away
Mori Ogai opened his eyes from where he had been lying down on his bedsheets. He had been on top of his bed, not having bothered to go under them last night. Actually, Mori preferred to be prepared. So if he had to be prepared to jump up, for any reason, he'd rather not be comically stuck in any bedsheets. He was naturally a skeptic of not being prepared to be attacked while in a vulnerable state.
He felt positively giddy this morning. He blinked, sitting up and looking out past the black curtains to the sunlight filtering in through the window. Today felt like it was going to be a wonderful day.
Mori hummed to himself, getting changed and ready for his day. Elise had managed to ensnare that girl thanks to that girl's apparent need to be her 'friend'. Mori thought it was so amusing, honestly, that the girl was projecting these preconceived notions of how Elise worked to fuel her desire to be her friend. Mori knew that Elise was merely an extension of his power. Of course, he adored his ability.
But she belonged to him in her entirety.
The thought of that girl stealing Elise was honestly too funny. There wouldn't be anything to steal in the first place. Mori hummed to himself, wondering which tie to wear today when inevitably coming into a confrontation with the head of the Armed Detective Agency.
Why was he expecting a confrontation?
After it had been reported to him that an unknown entity was trying to trace where he lived based on cellular signal from some nearby cell towers, he had his subordinates work on the details. They concluded in the report to him that it was due to an ability user who could influence technology. This ability user was using a cellphone number that Mori actually almost comically, easily traced to be the cellphone of Yukichi Fukuzawa. Which meant, the ability user was Katai, a subordinate recluse of the Armed Detective Agency's intelligence gathering force.
How careless. Fukuzawa should have known better than to mix his work phone with his personal cell. It was humorous to say the least. And a little sad.
Then again, that old-fashioned Samurai really wasn't that cunning. It's what made Mori obviously superior. Mori Ogai knew about Katai and he made sure to know everything about his enemy leaders and their pawns. Naturally, with his influence and network of financial gain, he managed to shut down any attempts to trace him directly. However, he knew the president would be trying to go to whatever locations they had managed to piece together with that annoying brat of his, Ranpo Edogawa.
He recalled the call from the night before that he'd made with fondness. He had waited until it was the middle of the night and Elise had alerted him that Alu was asleep to finally contact the president.
Fukuzawa answered. "Hello?"
He sounded confused and a bit on edge. Perfect. Mori smirked to himself, casually sitting on the bed, enjoying the momentary bewilderment of the other party. Really, being so bad always felt so good. "Hello, Yu-Chan," Mori said, mostly to piss off Fukuzawa.
"Bastard—how did you get this number!" Fukuzawa hissed.
"I just looked it up in the yellow pages," Mori flat out lied, humorously.
"Bullshit." Fukuzawa growled. "And don't call me that, ever again! That's a disgusting way to address someone three years older than you! And even if I wasn't, that's not something you say to someone of my age!"
"It fits you, what can I say?" Mori hummed, poking the growling feral samurai some more, finding it so entertaining and very easy. After all, Fukuzawa had always hated his guts. It gave him something to look forward to every day. "Hmm, but you're up even though it's so late? I take it you were waiting for me to call you? Oh my, how sweet," Mori continued to goad his opponent, grinning like the snake he was.
"I was not!" Fukuzawa stiffly replied, hissing. Honestly, he sometimes sounded like a cat.
Mori actually hated cats. They were so judgemental. Of course, someone who had placed him in this position of power had the capability to turn into a cat…but he was the exception. And even so, despite this, Mori honestly didn't even know how long that particular calico cat's loyalty to him leading the Port Mafia would even last.
"Regardless. Someone tried to hack my phone signal earlier," Mori hummed. "Kindly keep your pawns off my lawn, will you?"
"You!" Fukuzawa instantly went deathly cold on the other end. "You better not do anything to that girl!"
Ah. Just as Mori had suspected. They must have found out somehow that he did have the girl in his grasp. He wondered how but then again, the Armed Detective Agency had Ranpo Edogawa so perhaps that was how they found out.
"Oh you," Mori hummed, "I would never dream of touching a girl that's over twelve… after all, you know my preference better than anyone," he sneered back, with a saccharine tone.
"You disgusting—"
Click.
Mori hung up with a hum. Oh, it really did bring joy to his cold unfeeling heart to know that there was someone in this world that he could find such sadistic pleasure of messing with and seem to never tire of it.
Mori delicately laid out the two ties he was choosing between on the bed. Blue would be great with the white diamonds to show class and exude his maturity, but the red diamonds and black stripes really just screamed 'this is just business, but please take it personally'.
It was a no-brainer which tie Mori chose to wear.
It was so soft. It felt nice. It was warm. It didn't feel like she was in Yosano's infirmary though. That puzzled Alu. Her eyes fluttered open to bright sunlight filtering in through the window. She came face to face with Elise, leaning in, observing.
With a noise of surprise, Alu shot upright. "Ah! What time is it?" Alu asked, frazzled, sleepy and bewildered. She rubbed her eyes.
Elise sat next to her on the bed. "Oh, it's morning."
Alu still didn't know what time it was. But, well morning, she could work with that. She noticed Juubi was quiet. Perhaps he was catching a fox nap. Honestly, that was okay with her. She felt too tired to deal with his complaining first thing after waking up. Remembering the events of the previous day, Alu tried not to let her immediate reaction be depression.
No, she had things to focus on today! Two goals actually…collect information on Ryou and get to know Miss Elise more! "Are you hungry?" Elise asked her.
Alu blinked. Ah. Her stomach growled loudly, as though to answer for her, in desperation. Alu winced, guilty and embarrassed. "It would appear so," she said, sheepish, scratching her head with a meek smile.
"Oh, Rintaro cooks. Do you want him to make you something?" Elise asked, tilting her head.
Alu curdled at the thought of touching anything that guy made. She shivered. "No…it's fine. I think I'll just have some yogurt and uh…oh right… I should probably be leaving…" She got off the bed, hastily.
Elise hung back but she definitely wanted to keep Alu close to herself and Rintaro's side. "Make sure to bring your phone with you," she said, gazing at Alu.
Alu blinked. But she nodded. "Yeah, of course. And as soon as I have a proper job, I'll make sure to pay you back, okay?"
"You don't owe us," Elise said, firmly.
Alu quieted. "I know," she said finally, with a small sad smile. She opened the door to Elise's bedroom. "But even so…I'm not someone who likes to leave a debt unsettled."
"Not a debt. It's an investment," Elise corrected her. Amusingly enough, she sounded a lot like Rintaro. Alu couldn't help but purse her lips in amusement.
Alu gazed at her. "…Elise, may I ask you something?" She asked, softly.
Elise blinked. "Sure."
"The reason you are being nice to me—you and that Dr. Perv, it's because you want something from me, right?" Alu asked, bluntly. "There's just too much that doesn't add up for a mere stranger like me to be treated so well like this when you only just met me."
"I could say the same for you," Elise shot back evenly, though her tone was bemused and monotone somehow at the same time, "You wanted to be my friend after only knowing me for a day."
"That's different," Alu said, tilting her head at Elise, with a small smile. "I just want to understand you better, Miss Elise."
"Well, I want to understand you better too," Elise retorted, crossing her arms.
Alu blinked. Then she giggled. Elise was trying so hard to level with her, it honestly made Alu like Elise more. Honestly, she knew that most likely, this was just a means to ensnare her, but she oddly wasn't threatened when it was Elise. That man was a separate can of worms but she'd just deal with that later. "Touché," she giggled, smiling at Elise.
Elise knew that Alu was sharp. She knew that, but she didn't know what to say without it hurting Rintaro's chances of ensnaring her in his Port Mafia web. "We do want something from you," she found herself finally saying. "We just want you to confide in us, okay?"
Alu blinked. "Confide?"
Elise fidgeted. "Yes. You don't have a place to stay right? It's kind of clear that you're a wandering floater. So at this time, it's not like you even have anything stable. You said as much, yourself. So, at least, consider staying in touch…if you need something…" Elise trailed off. Had she said too much? She was worried. Rintaro would get angry if this girl slipped through his fingers.
Alu just chuckled again. "I will, thanks, Miss Elise," she said, beaming at Elise.
Elise thought she had a nice smile.
Alu turned away and walked towards the front door. In the living room her eyes fell upon Rintaro sitting on the couch, casually looking at some sort of file in his hands. He looked like he was dressed like the day before, except this time, on the couch next to him, was a dark overcoat that looked a bit like something a wanna-be vampire aficionado would wear to come off as edgy and intimidating. She quirked a brow at his choice of dress.
"Are you going to work or a costume party?" She found herself asking him.
He blinked. He had not been expecting that. He actually laughed, amused. "Well, good morning to you, too," he said, cheerfully, with a small snicker.
Alu tilted her head. "Sorry, force of habit." She grimaced, turning away. She wasn't actually trying to antagonize anyone here, but she seriously couldn't take him seriously with that weird overcoat of his.
"No, no," he waved a hand breezily, "you're allowed your opinion. I don't mind someone who isn't afraid to speak their mind—in fact, I prefer it."
Alu sensed the good-humored laid back nature he was putting out, but at the same time, she was sharp enough to detect the cold undertones. This man was a good actor. But that's all he was.
Though, she detected he was being rather frank and honest with her as well at this moment.
Elise trotted into the room, watching them both.
Alu saw that her purple phone was in Elise's hand. She blinked. "Oh, whoops, did I forget that?" She asked, sheepishly scratching her head, looking at Elise. Elise nodded and just came over, and held it out to her. Alu took the phone and placed it in her pocket.
Elise tilted her head at her. "Do you wanna go shopping?" She asked, out of the blue.
Alu blinked. "Huh? Oh, no…no, I really think I've imposed enough," she said, waving her hands, wondering if Elise was trying to earn her friendship through buying her things. It would make sense considering Rintaro's own—spoiling to get what he wants— attitude. Actually, it reminded Alu of another person as well, someone that she really didn't want to think about right now.
"Oh, that's a great idea," Rintaro hummed, beaming at them both.
Alu sweated. "I have clothes," she countered. Looking at herself, she was wearing a simple outfit that Yosano had given her, after all. She didn't need anything else. Well, maybe a coat… but no, no, she wouldn't impose!
"Your clothes are plain and boring," Elise huffed. She pouted at Alu. "And your face clearly says you do want something. So what do you want?"
Alu hated how expressive her face was, apparently. Darn her stupid face muscles. She scratched her head, feeling guilty. Rintaro and Elise were waiting expectantly for an answer. "Okay, so… I get cold easily so I guess a coat wouldn't be the worst thing," she found herself admitting, feeling ashamed. "But really, I don't need you to bother. I'll just find a hand-me-down somewhere…you'd be surprised what free clothes you can find in people's junk sales if you know where to look," she awkwardly chuckled.
Elise looked horrified.
Honestly, comically enough, so did Rintaro. Both of them were sharing the same thought : This girl needs to get a proper outfit, badly. Does she even know what kinds of germs last on dirty clothes picked up off the street? How long has she lived like this?
Alu could sense the genuine concern from the both of them just from their looks. She waved her arms again. "Oh, uh, not these clothes! I got these clothes from a nice woman—um, her name is Yosano…"
That name caused a twitch in Rintaro and even Elise. Alu didn't catch it, still babbling nervously to try to distract from how self conscious she felt.
"So uh, yeah, apparently we're around the same height so her clothes fit me, small world right? I really lucked out. Pretty sure everything down to the shoes actually used to belong…." Alu trailed off, quieting. Her smile seemed to stick to her face, frozen.
Elise gazed at Alu, frowning. "Alu?"
Some tears began to form in Alu's eyes. She missed the agency. She really missed them. She wanted to at least thank Yosano for the clothes. She wanted to thank Kunikida for his honesty and attempts to forgive her for how she had attacked him before, and she wanted to thank Odasaku for just being a kind man. Fukuzawa wasn't someone she knew very well at all but she did want to thank him for the care she received thanks to Yosano and how it was thanks to him and his agency that she could even save those kids from Ms. Austen. And Ranpo….
She just wanted to find the right words to tell him from the bottom of her heart, how sorry she was. She didn't have those words right now. But she wanted to find them.
Everyone at the agency had been nice to her. Not because of her fox form. She knew that. She knew they weren't like other organizations that would only try to get close in order to use her. She weirdly, suddenly felt very naked in Yosano's hand-me-down clothes. She felt like they weighed a ton on her—but that was just her internal guilt. She breathed hard, hugging her arms, feeling the guilt bubbling under her skin and in her body. She couldn't cry. She shouldn't. It was her own fault. Tears were pointless. They wouldn't change anything. She had to suck it up. She just had to hold it in. Like she always did.
Elise hugged her.
Alu blinked, and Elise spoke. "I don't know what's wrong. But, you looked like you needed a hug…" she said, awkwardly.
Rintaro blinked. Huh, Elise was acting more on her own than usual. He was very fascinated. This was the most independently he'd seen Elise treat anyone without him having to tell her how to act first. Oh yes, he planned to keep Alu for his precious Elise-Chan.
No matter what.
"Sorry," Alu's voice wavered and she patted Elise awkwardly. "I'm okay…"
"Whatever is wrong, you shouldn't bottle it up," Rintaro said, concerned, tilting his head at Alu. "Also, I let Elise-Chan get whatever her heart desires, so if she wants to buy you some clothes, I am in no way opposed."
Alu felt heavy, but she didn't want to impose any more than she had. She shook her head, wiping her eyes, bracing herself from releasing the sprinklers in her tear ducts. "I'll be alright. I was just thinking…about how hard it is to find the words to apologize sometimes…"
"Is this about the person you hurt yesterday?" Elise asked, curious, tugging on Alu's arm.
Alu didn't look at Rintaro or her but she let her side bangs shadow her eyes as she nodded. "Yeah."
Elise huffed. "Why is it so hard to apologize?" She sounded genuinely bewildered.
Alu chuckled weakly. Elise really did come off as socially awkward but that wasn't her fault considering her situation and background. "You know, I ask myself that question too," Alu replied, wiping her eyes and taking a shaky breath.
"You have a voice, just use it," Elise said puzzled.
Alu smiled sadly at Elise. "I could say the same for you."
Elise pouted. "What is that supposed to mean?"
"You have a lot you'd like to say that you keep bottled up inside…" Alu pointed out.
Elise blushed, upset. "I-I don't bottle anything up! I say exactly what I want! It's not my fault if people are deaf!"
Alu shook her head, but she was smiling smally. She and this girl really did have a lot in common. She knew there was a reason she had been drawn to her. "That's good, just keep saying what you, yourself, want people to hear," Alu said, puzzling Elise even more.
Rintaro observed this conversation but he was quiet and observant. He seemed subdued, lost in thought. "If you don't mind me asking, is there anything we can do to help?" Rintaro asked, with a small sigh now, standing up now from the couch, putting his coat over his arm, folded.
Alu shook her head. She figured he was asking to find some leverage since he seemed the type. Although she knew Elise was trying to make her feel better, Alu knew this was something she had to work out for herself. She had to accept that things were the way they were until she was ready to take that necessary step to amend things. Still, she hated feeling like she was being given so many things she felt she didn't deserve. Whether it was clothings, food, or a phone…or even just as simple as a hat, she wanted to earn those things, properly.
"I appreciate the concern," she said, looking at him and Elise. She did appreciate it on some level—fake or not— because well, she felt that when people offer to do something nice, it's just polite to acknowledge their effort at least. "I have something I need to do today, I think I'll be going. You and Miss Elise look like you're probably headed off to well, whatever you do for a living as a doctor," she said, shrugging, smiling at Elise and him. This was a cheerful smile. She had to raise her mood. She had to get away from being trapped in her head so she could focus.
"If there is anything you need, just let me know!" Elise said, crossing her arms at Alu. "And it's clear you don't like those clothes you're wearing—you should have something nice at least! Since we are friends now, it's the least I can do to take care of you, right? Rintaro, I wanna go shopping with her!" She pouted at Rintaro.
Alu scratched her head. She kinda did agree actually. While it was nice of Yosano, she did feel incredibly awkward wearing someone else's clothes when she actually knew the person. When it was just old clothing lying around she could make it her own—give it a story—like the inner creative writer she tended to hobby herself as when alone. But these clothes belonged to someone she knew, and because of that, it actually hurt to think about. "I really appreciate the offer," she said, glancing at Rintaro, a bit hesitant. It wasn't up to Elise in the end, after all. She didn't want to mooch off this guy's dirty money—because Alu knew it was most likely dirty money that paid for all of this and where they lived.
Her nervousness must have been evident because Rintaro just smiled, "It's not a problem of owing me," he said with a hum, to Alu. "Just make Elise-Chan happy for the day. That's the only payment I need, alright?"
Alu nodded. That much, she could definitely do. She looked at Elise. "Okay, I guess we're having a girl's day out, shopping!" She said brightly, grinning with a thumbs up. Elise's entire face lit up like a lantern, she exuded excited energy and she threw her hands up in the air.
"Yay! I'm going to play with Alu more today! Shopping will actually be fun for a change without stinky Rintaro around!" She hugged Alu's arm, giggling with excitement and jubilation. Alu's eyes flickered though.
"Uh, can I just ask you both something?" She tentatively inquired, looking from Elise to him and back to Elise again mostly because looking too long at him made her feel uncomfortable.
"Certainly," Rintaro said, good-natured.
"If Miss Elise goes with me shopping…where does that leave you?" Alu asked him, frowning.
He blinked. "I can't go a whole day without her, I'd miss her darling face too much," he huffed, putting a hand over his heart like someone swooning. Alu's eye twitched. Ah yes, he was definitely 11/10 creeper material. "But if it's for a few hours or so, I have managed just fine before," he hummed, shrugging.
Alu tilted her head. She mulled over what to say next. While she didn't exactly care about this guy, she did still care about his safety. "Look, you probably know as well as I do that I don't have a great impression of you," she said, bluntly.
He blinked, and he smiled, bemused. He enjoyed how blunt this girl was. How entertaining. He wondered what she'd do once she learned he was the head of the Port Mafia. Seeing her demeanor change then would be fascinating. Intriguing to say the least. He chuckled. "Of course, after all, I wouldn't expect you to after learning how my darling Elise-Chan works," he said, unperturbed, just gesturing in Elise-Chan's direction.
"Regardless," Alu said, serious, "I don't want you to be left unprotected. She's your ability right? She said that she has to keep you safe."
Rintaro blinked. This concern didn't feel fake. It puzzled him. She obviously didn't like him —at all—for obvious plausible reasons, but she was still concerned about him? What an odd little girl she was. All the more amused, Rintaro chuckled. "Oh? That may be true but I promise you, what I actually do for a living is spend a lot of time behind a desk doing management."
"I don't feel comfortable leaving you exposed," Alu said bluntly. She looked to Elise. "How about we go shopping around Dr. Perv's lunch break?"
Rintaro twitched. For two reasons. The first being, why did she insist on calling him Dr. Perv? He knew that would stop as soon as she realized just what an important figure head he was. And then the second, why did she even care if he was protected or not? She had no claim or loyalty to him or anything as of yet. He could believe it was a sense of dependence but he actually got the feeling this girl wasn't dependent on others at all—at least— not intentionally. "Oh," Elise blinked at Alu. "That makes more sense. Rintaro is dumb so if I'm not there, he'll cry. Seriously."
Alu chuckled a little to herself, trying to picture that man crying in his office and oddly found it gratifying. "I kinda wanna stick around to see that," she smirked at Elise, devilishly.
Elise blinked and then laughed. "Oh, it's not hard to make him cry!"
Rintaro felt oddly slightly and grumpy. "I'll have you both know I do have feelings," he pouted.
"We don't care," both girls said deadpan at the same time, before they just smiled at each other again.
"Jynx!" Alu giggled, holding out her hand for a high five to Elise. Elise looked at the high five like she had no idea what to do with it. Alu gave her a high five anyways. "Okay Elise, you owe me a soda!"
"Huh? Why?" Elise complained. "You tricked me into it!" But she wasn't actually upset. She was happy to have someone to rail on Rintaro with.
Rintaro knew that recruiting this girl would put him in big trouble at work and apparently at home. It was time to prepare for these two constantly teasing him, he could tell. But he did smile a little, walking over to the apartment door. "Well, if it concerns you that much, I'll let you know when I'm on a lunch break, and you may take my Darling Elise-Chan shopping, sound good?" He said, tilting his head at Alu who was currently petting Elise's head.
"Sounds like a plan," Alu said, giving him a thumbs up.
Rintaro oddly liked this girl's personality. She was just so quirky. She would fit right in at the Port Mafia, he mused. She wasn't the kind of person to turn on her ideals or her sense of loyalty to what's she believed in. He could admire that. That was the kind of attitude he would want from those serving under him. Now it was just a matter of how to get her to say yes…. He did love a challenge. He just wished she was younger…preferably under thirteen… what a shame she was so old.
Additionally, he nodded, adding, "Oh and as for those old clothes, you can leave them here. I'm sure Elise can find some use for them." That was a lie. He just wanted Akiko Yosano's old clothes so he could reminisce about a time when that woman belonged to him.
"Ugh, Rintaro just wants them because they belong to Akiko," Elise said, wrinkling her nose with disgust.
"Who?" Alu asked dumbly. "Wait, you mean Miss Yosano?"
Elise nodded. "Duh, who else would I be talking about?" She asked, rolling her eyes.
"Huh? You know Miss Yosano?" Alu asked, perking up. This was news to her.
"Miss Yosano used to work with us," Elise shrugged. "But that was a long time ago. She left because Rintaro is heartless and a huge pervert," she said deadpan, looking to Alu.
"Ah, actually, I can see that," Alu said, eyebrows raising. "But, wait, that would mean she worked with you when she was a child?"
"Her medical gift made her useful to the war we were fighting at the time," Rintaro said, with a deep sigh. "However, —and I suspect this won't improve your opinion of me—I told her that her gift was meant to be useful to the war efforts and that she needed to stop getting so emotionally attached, you could say. Unfortunately, she cracked from the pressure. She has a gift that helps bring people back from the brink of death— fully healed—naturally that kind of gift is a godsend in war…but she felt increasingly guilty, as she ended up having to save the same soldiers over and over only to -what she felt anyways—lead them to their deaths again without actually letting them die. She bottled up that sense of self-loathing of what she was capable of but the straw really came when a boy she admired killed himself because of her. Nothing I did brought her back from that place…and now she works for a man I absolutely can't stand. The irony."
Alu was quiet.
She looked to Rintaro. he sounded bitter and…sad? She couldn't place it. But, she suddenly felt there was more to him than the obvious Dr. Perv profile she was concocting for him in her mind.
"You really cared about her," Alu noted, gazing at him.
Rintaro froze. He hadn't intended to come off in any particular way. The blunt way she stated that—no disgust—- caught him off guard. Did he care about her? Yes, of course he had cared about Akiko. He had been the one to find her after all and give her a sense of purpose. She always yelled at him and treated him though like he was a person. She had been someone that actually made him enjoy going to work. Rintaro didn't say anything but Elise-Chan gazed at him, silent.
She trotted over to Alu and tugged on her shirt. Alu blinked, looking at her. "Don't go anywhere too far," she said crossly to Alu. "Rintaro and I are going to work, just stay here and ….and do what you like."
Alu blinked. "Oh, I was going to go out by myself," she said, sheepish.
"At least call us then," Elise stated, "I'll have Rintaro send a car for you."
Alu was like, what kind of job did these two do, seriously? She snickered. She found it kind of amusing. Like, she had walked into some kind of anime or something where the heroine was secretly being doted on in a rich people lifestyle themed fairy tale manner. Elise blinked. Rintaro observed her quiet.
"Did I say something funny?" Elise asked, puzzled.
"No," Alu said, putting her hands in her pockets for a moment, with a hum, smiling at Elise. "I just find this whole situation kinda funny, you know?"
"I must get going," Rintaro said, cheerfully, opening the door. "Come along, Elise-Chan. She'll call us later," he said, gesturing to Elise to follow him. Elise pouted. But she trotted over.
"Call me soon!" Elise demanded of Alu as the door swung shut behind her. Alu just nodded, waving smally.
Alu let her hand drop back down to her side when she was alone again. This apartment felt oddly big and empty without Miss Elise around. Alu wondered what Dr. Perv did all day for a living. She was curious. But at the same time, she kinda liked having a mystery to solve. She'd take her time with this one, she decided.
She had Juubi mentally on mute for the time being. She needed time to think, and she needed to clear her mind. She looked again down at her clothes. So those two knew Miss Yosano? The way that Rintaro guy had talked about his time working with her—he sounded more like a sad old man than a pervert chasing the skirts of elementary aged little girls….then again, he was a many masked face wearing man, and Alu knew she had to be conscientious of that. But, for some reason, she couldn't explain why she suddenly had such curiosity in getting to know this non-dark side of Rintaro.
Ugh, I'm too soft, she thought to herself, rubbing her face. Still, her stomach growled and Alu knew she had to get her own day going as well. I just need to find that kid, Ryou…but how?
Fukuzawa paced in his office.
It was still only mid-morning.
Fukuzawa was rattled by what happened last night. On edge, stiff, and anxious, he looked up when he saw Ranpo come in and shut the door. Relief broke out on his face and he quickly walked over to Ranpo. "How did it go?" He asked, expression serious.
"Well, I narrowed it down to only two possible places," Ranpo said, gazing at the president.
"And?" Fukuzawa pressed, finally relieved to know there was some plan forming.
"You won't like either of them," Ranpo said deadpan.
Fukuzawa blinked. What did Ranpo mean?
Oh. This was what he meant.
Fukuzawa stared at the tall building, leading up to the Head Quarters of the infamous Port Mafia. Fukuzawa grimaced. Walking through those doors was definitely suicide. And yet, if this was one of the two places where he was holding that girl….Fukuzawa looked at Ranpo.
"So, do we make an appointment or do a walk-in?" Ranpo joked, though the mood was more serious than he addressed it to be.
"Tch, that bastard…" Fukuzawa didn't lose his cool easily, but that damn Ogai Mori just pushed his buttons every which way the wrong way!
A car suddenly casually drove up to the curb. A car door clicked open and a sneering voice greeted both Ranpo and Fukuzawa as the head of the snake finally revealed himself, Elise in tow. "My, my, what a warm reception I'm encountering this morning, would you boys like to come inside," he leered, smirking at Fukuzawa and Ranpo.
Fukuzawa's hand twitched instinctively for the sword at his waist. He wanted to cut this man down. No, he planned to.
Ranpo however just tilted his head. "No need," he said bluntly, staring at Mori with his usual squinty eyed expression. "Did you get my message?"
"What message?" Mori asked, bemused, tilting his head at the short little cocky detective. He would love nothing more than to have him shot just if it meant breaking Fukuzawa completely. But, it was a pointless death. And Mori only did things if they were within reason. He was a businessman, after all.
"I used a cell to contact you," Ranpo said, tilting his head at Mori.
He wasn't smiling but he wasn't frowning either. His expression was hard to read. Mori always did like a good poker face. He shrugged however, shutting the car door and walking to face them off at the foot of the steps leading to his building. " Oh, you mean that sad attempt where I was easily able to trace your hacker pawn all the way to Fukuzawa's cellphone?" He scoffed, amused.
"Sad attempt?" Ranpo scoffed, tilting his head at Mori, adjusting his hat. "No, that went perfectly."
"Oh, in what way?" Mori asked, eyes narrowing. Elise remained quiet, but she was ready if a fight did break out.
Ranpo's green eyes glinted dangerously as he opened them. "It was a warning to remind you just who you're dealing with. And if you fail to heed it, then you're the only one who will lose."