Title: The Christmas Mystery
Chapter: 2/3
Genre: Shounen ai / Slash, Mystery, General, Mitsui's POV
Warning: Mild OOC, mild sap, (not too) lousy plot
DISCLAIMER: SD is not mine.
{Part Two}
"OH! My necklace! It's gone!"
She breaks down immediately. Her loud sobs is the only sound in the room.
The rest are speechless, each
with his or her ghastly expression. Eyes are wide open, as if about to drop out
from their sockets any minute now. One thing for sure, all of us are staring
incredulously at the now empty box.
Miyagi's
face is face, far whiter than a corpse's. Ayako's hand covers her mouth, which
was wide open in shock. Sakuragi's jaw has literally slammed the floor. Rukawa
looks like—Rukawa. Except maybe that pair of raised fox-like eyebrows hint his
surprise—a little. Akagi is angry—his anger must have exceeded his
astonishment. Min-kun's lips quiver, his glasses nearly slip from the bridge of
his nose.
And
me? Well, I can't really say, for I have no mirror with me at that time. But my
face ought to have reflected one of the faces present—if not worse.
"Why? Why?" Haruko wails.
"I…I can't believe this…"
comments Min-kun. His grasps tighten with such force I never knew he could
muster. "A theft, right under our noses!"
"It fell somewhere," says Akagi.
I sense he is trying to assure himself. "Let's look for it on the floor."
"No, nothing," says Sakuragi.
"The floor is as clean as a whistle. There's nothing under the coffee table,
either."
All of a sudden a bright idea
presents itself to me. An ingenious plan only I can ever come up with.
If you're thinking I'm starting
to sound like Sakuragi Hanamichi and his never-ending 'tensai' act, zip it. I
never claimed to be one.
"It seems we have a mystery on
our hands," I announce. I am surprised to hear the words as a calm remark. "Or
should I say, on my hands."
They stare at me; I knew they
would do just that. They have a very good reason to be afraid.
"What do you mean—your hands?"
Miyagi points his index finger at me.
"Meaning, my dear boy, I'm going
to solve the case of Haruko's disappeared necklace. And my aide, Kogure
Kiminobu."
I hear loud choking sounds from
Miyagi, Akagi and Sakuragi. It is obvious they are trying not to laugh at what
I just said. Min-kun and Ayako merely goggle at me. They do not say anything,
but just by looking at their eyes I can see doubt in them. Min-kun is surprised
to hear my dragging him into my investigation, electing him as my
companion-in-detection, I suppose. As you would have thought Rukawa is still
himself. He rolls his eyes. Haruko is sobbing like there's no tomorrow.
"And before this case is solved,
no one is allowed to leave the premise—not even to the lawn," I go on.
"Mitsui! Are you trying to pull our
legs? This is serious matter!" demands Akagi.
I am enraged. "I know that! A
theft is no joke, and the same goes to what I told you a moment ago!"
"But who knows?" chips in
Sakuragi. "Maybe you're the culprit—you're trying to hide your tracks by playing
detective."
"Stop accusing me without proof,
Sakuragi Hanamichi!" My eyes only see red; I am blind with fury.
"Do'aho, shut up," Rukawa
mutters loudly.
"Please don't fight! It's
Christmas!" The ever-sensible Min-kun, my helper, reminds us. "It's bad enough
to have a crime committed right here."
"Kogure-sempai's right," agrees
Ayako. "We're all here when it occurred, so we can't accuse one another without
thinking. All of us are under suspicions."
I throw a thankful glance at
Min-kun as Ayako speaks. Even with those worried eyes of his, he smiles weakly
at me.
"I'm not going to cooperate with
a detective who's a possible thief—like the rest of us," points out Sakuragi.
"If you really want to look into this problem, Mitchy, the first step you
should take is to clear your own name, convincing us you're not guilty."
Ouch, he has a point.
"I vouch for Hisashi," Min-kun
speaks up confidently. "I say he's clean—he's not the thief."
"But sempai…you're his
boyfriend. We can't really take your word into account." Ayako takes a quick
look at us.
"For goodness' sake! We were
holding hands all the time—including when the blackout took place. Are you
going to suggest Hisashi stole the necklace with his foot?"
It is, and always will be, a
general knowledge that Kogure Kiminobu is a truthful lad. He would never tell
lies—be it for his or my own benefit.
Secondly, he is a bad actor.
There is no way his expression can show that much emotion should all is a mere
pretence.
Akagi folds his arms. "Fine!
Mitsui, since you think you're so clever, go ahead and try. I've nothing to
lose. But I warn you again, you might as well forget it."
I know is useless to debate with
him. I push Akagi's threat out from my mind.
"Hisashi,
if you really want to solve this case," Min-kun is saying, "you'd better hurry
up. We promised we'll be home by ten-thirty, remember?"
Ten-thirty.
And the clock behind Min-kun strikes nine. Only one hour and thirty minutes for
me.
"How
about it, Mitsui?" asks Miyagi. "Can you really?"
Can
I?
"Of
course he can," Min-kun defends me.
Why
is it so hard for them to have a little faith in me? Am I that stupid?
Do
me a favour and don't answer that.
"OK, everyone, empty your
pockets—or bags, at that," I instruct. "I'll empty mine as well—no exception."
They obey, although they
complain and grunt.
"Nothing eccentric," remarks
Miyagi, gawking at the wallets, keys, and gift boxes. "No trace of the necklace
either. "Hey, Rukawa, Hanamichi, you haven't opened your presents."
"The necklace can't be in any of
them. They're still wrapped," I reason.
"The necklace isn't on us,"
observes Sakuragi. "Maybe someone sneaked in and ran off with it?"
"Do'aho, that's impossible,"
Rukawa says softly.
"It's TEN-SAI!"
"Sakuragi, a burglar can't appear and vanish along with Haruko's
necklace in twenty seconds," Min-kun tells him.
I whisper to Sakuragi, "Are you
planning to impress Haruko by choosing to study this mystery too?"
His answer comes hesitantly.
"No! A genius like me needs not to do such a thing!"
"Yare yare…"
"Are you done?" demands Akagi
impatiently.
"Until I discover the missing
necklace, the case is still on." I turn to Min-kun. "I think it's time to
cross-question them—one by one. I'll be asking them in the kitchen. Meanwhile
you keep a close watch on them. Make sure no one eavesdrops, OK?"
"I've
never seen you this enthusiastic before, Hisashi. You're really resolute about
this."
"Is it wrong?"
Min-kun watches me. "Not at all.
I'll help you in any way I can."
"That's great! You're the best
side-kick!"
The
lights are not really bright, but enough for me to see my companion across the
table.
haruko is dabbing her red eyes
with her handkerchief.
"Are you ready to answer a few
questions?" I ask solemnly.
Haruko nods, apathetic.
For the reason that nobody can
provide an alibi, I will have to ask some other questions.
"Did you feel anything out of
ordinary during the blackout? Anything suspicious? Did you feel as if somebody
was moving in front of you?"
She shakes her head.
I sigh. "Tell me what you did
before, during and after the blackout?"
"Why, Mitsui-sempai, you were
there yourself. I opened my gift—that's when we all saw the necklace. After
that I replaced it inside the box. Soon before the blackout I put it on the
table."
I nod thoughtfully, "Any idea
who might've done it?"
Haruko bites her lower lip as
she thinks. Finally she shakes her head,
"How much does it cost, do you
know?"
She names its price. She is
right when she says it is expensive.
"That's a lot of digits," I state.
I thank her before she departs.
He glares at me, making me
uncomfortable.
"Why would I steal my own
sister's necklace?" Akagi disputes. "I don't wear jewellery!"
This is going to be tricky.
"Tell me how did you persuade your parents to buy the necklace for Haruko."
Akagi gives me another of his
(in)famous looks, as if telling me I'm just making myself look foolish. But he
plays along anyway, just to humour me I reckon. "I told them Haruko's been a
good girl, so she deserves to have it for her Christmas present."
"Who paid for it?"
"They did. Not a single yen left
my pocket."
"Did you notice anything during
the blackout?"
"No. I only heard them
complaining."
I put my fingertips together.
"You're not experiencing any financial problem?"
"No, never had."
"That's all. Thank you Akagi."
"No. Thank you for
squandering my time."
"OK, so, Miyagi—"
"Aya-chan's innocent!" he
interrupts. "And so am I!"
"Yes, yes, Miyagi, sit down.
Thank you. What were you doing when the lights went out?"
"Nothing. I fainted, don't you
remember? I only woke up a second before the lights came back—or was it after?"
"Oh, yeah."
"So I don't know anything. But
one thing's for sure—Aya-chan didn't do it."
"I'll ask Ayako for myself to
find out. Any financial problem, Miyagi?"
He pauses. He shakes his head.
I dismiss him. Miyagi lied, that
I am certain.
Two days ago, he himself told
all of us he needed some money.
Rukawa looks at me
unemotionally. There is not even the slightest fear on his face. Either he's
really blameless, or he's so damned good in hiding his culpability. Somehow I'm
inclined to believe the latter option…
"What were you doing during the
blackout?"
"Nothing. I was asleep."
"Right…" I don't believe him.
"It's impracticable to say you were asleep the whole time, Rukawa. Considering
you were sitting exactly next to the victim."
Oh,
yeah. I forgot to mention our positions. Well, from Haruko's right, it was
Rukawa, Sakuragi, me, Min-kun, Miyagi, Ayako and finally Akagi. We were sitting
in a circle. So whether Rukawa realizes it or not, he has the most opportunity
to commit the larceny.
"I didn't do it."
He read my mind. Damn.
"Sure, Rukawa. That's what
everybody says."
This boy could perform any crime
and get away with it easily. Trying to make him confess is roughly speaking as
feasible as making rocks bleed.
"Ask away."
"Thank
you Ayako. You recall, when the blackout occurred, what were you doing?"
"I
was sipping my juice. I didn't move—as a matter of fact I don't think anyone
did."
"How much is your bracelet?"
She looks at the jewellery on
her wrist as she answers.
"That's a small fortune," I
remark offhandedly. "It's a funny thing—only Haruko's necklace is missing. Any
idea why?"
Ayako solely smiles at me
coolly. "Are you suggesting I stole the necklace?"
"Everyone's a suspect. It just
struck me as peculiar that your bracelet managed to escape from the fate of
Haruko's necklace."
A
nod. "I see. It's normal to suspect me, I guess—in view of the fact that I'm
the only girl—aside from Haruko—present when the pilfering took place. You must
think I want to have the necklace for myself, don't you?"
I do not answer. Ayako probably
guesses what my answer would be.
"More to the point, I was just
saying to Kogure-sempai—I might be the most plausible thief."
"Oh, why is that?"
"I shan't deny it,
Mitsui-sempai. My dad's company is in danger of facing bankruptcy. You can say
I'm in need of money right now."
Our eyes meet, her placid ones
and my puzzled ones.
And last but not least, the self-proclaimed
genius, Sakuragi Hanamichi. He raises his eyebrows, telling me to start.
"During the blackout—what were
you up to?"
"The blameless genius didn't do
anything. I thought it was better for me if I remain motionless, because I
thought the electricity might come back in a jiffy. Besides, it was too short a
time to do much."
"Uh-huh. Did you sense anything
suspicious?"
Sakuragi waves a careless hand.
"The only mistrustful matter that I observed so far is you wanting to be a
detective, that's all."
"I resent that."
"It's up to you. Anything else?"
"Yeah. Who do you suspect?"
"Gori. He has a good number of
chances—to just swipe that necklace without anyone noticing. Above and beyond,
he was seated unerringly beside Haruko-san."
"He doesn't have a motive. What
about Rukawa? He was sitting close to Haruko—closer than you were to her, that
is. Why didn't you suspect him?"
The redhead shrugs. "It's just a
hunch on my part—not more than that. The fox is too stupid to plan this
thievery."
"So, how did the cross-examining
go?" asks Min-kun as he joined me.
"It
was a failure, if I may say so myself. A pity I don't have the air that'll make
a criminal confess on the spot."
Min-kun laughs. "It's not the
detective's air, Hisashi, that makes him a successful hound—it's his skills."
"Quite so. What happened in the
living room whilst I was in the kitchen?"
"I made Sakuragi and Rukawa open
the gifts they have with them. Sakuragi's box contained a wristwatch, Rukawa's
a few CDs. Sakuragi told me that the watch is meant for Haruko, and Rukawa said
he went to a relative's house before he came here, and that the CDs were given
to him by his cousin. However…"
My ears become attentive.
"However…?"
Min-kun shows me the wristwatch.
"Branded, you see. But the design—it's masculine. It doesn't make sense to give
this to Haruko."
I scrutinize it. "Then again…the
redhead might be speaking the truth. Common sense isn't exactly his strong
point. Perhaps that's why this watch is still with him."
"Probably. But there's too many
'mights' in this case."
""I see what you mean. It's like
you know something's wrong, yet you can't put your finger on it."
Min-kun urges me to rejoin the
party in the living room.
"I think we should search the
area again," Akagi is saying. "The necklace can't possibly disappear into this
air."
They do just that. Miyagi pushes
the sofas aside, Sakuragi empties the flower pots, and Ayako checks the
cabinets. Akagi removes the sofa cushions, until he gives a deep yell.
"Haruko! I found your necklace!
It's right here!"
WHAT?
"Oh! It is my necklace!"
She snatches the necklace away from its hiding place, pressing it against his
cheek lovingly.
"There, we've found it!"
exclaims Miyagi triumphantly.
"I told you there's no need for
a detective," Akagi glances at me coldly. I returned his intimidating look.
"The person who sat here must be
the thief," muses Ayako. "If my memory does not fail me, the person who sat
here was…"
Eyes turn to look at the person
as we recall who it was.
Gasps.
{End of Part Two}
Author's Notes: I'm starting to think that this whole mystery is rather absurd…oh well, me and my self-esteem problem…
