Alright, right off the bat I want to say that I know of the existence of the Detective Pikachu game. However, I've never played it, so this fic isn't really inspired by that. Instead, it's inspired by the Judgment games made by Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio. Recently I've been trying to beat them and the Yakuza games on Legend difficulty, so the idea for this fic came from there. The next thing I want to say is that I'm currently focusing more on another fic that I'm working on. Once my other fic is done, I'll turn my full attention to this one. Though since it's me we're talking about, I'll most likely end up working on both at the same time. Anywayyys, until next time, I hope you have a good one and that you're staying safe.
As the name advertised, it was another snowy day in Snowpoint City. Currently it was early morning in the snow covered city. For most people the day was just beginning. Bundled up to the best of her ability, Ana Hudson was one of those people. She was on her way to her part-time job. Coming up on the building, she was more than ready to get out of the snow.
Upon entering the building, Ana kicked the snow off her boots and made her way upstairs. Using her spare key to get into the office, Ana called out to her employer. "Mike! Are you up yet!?" Seeing his Gardevoir sitting at his desk, Ana had her answer. Smiling at the Pokémon, Ana took off coat and backpack and hung them up. "Good morning Emerald. I see Mike isn't up yet." As she was going over to knock on his bedroom door, Mike walked out fully dressed and ready for the day. Well. Almost. He was missing one vital piece of head wear. According to Mike at least. Crossing her arms, Ana shook her head. "Finally. You do know that it's currently eight in the morning, right?" Rubbing the back of his head, Mike avoided eye contact.
"Ya see, I really have been awake the past hour. Honest! It's just…" Sighing, he hung his head. "I… lost my hat." Springing back up, Mike looked around the room. "I've been looking all morning for the stupid thing! I could've sworn I hung it up in my room!" Letting out a call, Emerald drew all eyes to her. Opening one of the drawers, what she revealed was none other than Mike's missing fedora. Walking over to his desk, Mike pat Emerald on the head. Putting on his favorite hat, Mike smiled.
Laughing, Ana always found something new to be amazed at in the presence of Mike. "You know, sometimes I think you're the partner and Emerald is the true detective." Embarrassed, all Mike could do was shake his head.
When Mike heard the phone ring, any embarrassment he felt was thrown out the window. Picking up, Mike cleared his throat. "Hello, this is Mike Frost. Yes, I did put an ad in the paper. Is there something you need investigating? No? Then what did you…" Suddenly, Mike's mood sunk. Confused, Ana was about to ask what was wrong when Mike made the problem known. "Are you freakin' kidding me!? No! Of course I won't tell you what this weeks lotto numbers are!" Slamming the phone down, Mike could hear Ana giggling.
"You know Mike, if you actually gave your agency a name, something tells me you'd start to bring in more real customers." Not one to stay down, Mike quickly rebounded. With his head up he made for the kitchen.
"I know that. You can't rush naming a business though." While looking for ingredients to cook with, he paused to look over at Ana. "Eggs or pancakes?"
Surprised he would even ask, Ana didn't even have to think when she gave Mike her answer. "Pancakes of course."
Getting to work, Mike started making everyone breakfast. "So, how's your dad? Staying out of trouble I hope." Sitting down at the table, Ana was glad to share her fathers progress with Mike.
"He's doing good. Ever since you bailed him out of that loan shark's scam, he hasn't touched gambling since." Smiling, Mike was glad to hear that Ana's father was staying on the straight and narrow.
As Mike continued to cook, him and Ana talked about other things. Such as how her schooling was going and how happy she was to almost be done with it for the time being. When he was done cooking, Mike served for everyone. As an added treat for Emerald, he gave her a Poké Puff for finding his beloved hat.
Once everyone was finished, Ana took it upon herself to do the dishes. Standing up, Mike protested. "Hey, you've got classes soon. Let me handle those." Before he could do much else, Ana had already gathered all the plates.
"Don't worry about it. I've got time." Figuring he could at least clean up after Emerald, Mike swept up the crumbs left over from her Puff. While he was throwing the crumbs out, there was a knock at the door. Wincing, Mike had a pretty good idea as to who it was.
Bracing himself, he looked over at Ana who was giving him a weird look. "It's most likely the landlady. Just as a heads up, things miiight get ugly." After giving Ana proper warning, Mike opened the door. Much to his surprise, it wasn't the landlady. Instead, a man holding a briefcase was standing outside his apartment. He was wearing an expensive looking suit and equally expensive looking sunglasses. The man stood a whole two heads above Mike. In order to look Mike in the eyes as he spoke, the man had to look down.
"Michael Frost?" Only slightly irritated that the man chose to use his full name, Mike realized the man was only trying to be professional.
"Yes, that's me. I'm taking it you're here because of my ad in the paper?" Choosing to keep his sunglasses on, the man looked around Mike's apartment.
"If you want to get technical, then yes. May I come in?" Confused by what the man meant, Mike felt slightly uneasy. So long as his request wasn't shady however, a paying job was a paying job.
Stepping aside, Mike motioned for the man to enter. "Of course, right this way, Mr…" As they walked to his desk, Mike tried to get a name from his client. It wasn't until they reached his desk that the man gave Mike his name.
"Luke. Luke Casey." Holding out his hand to shake Luke's hand, Mike watched as Luke put his briefcase down on his desk.
"Nice to meet you Luke. I'd introduce myself, but uh… you already know my name. Ya know, 'cause of the ad." Mike was going to sit down, but noticed that Emerald had already taken his seat. So instead, he chose to stay standing. Making a mental note to buy a chair for his partner, Mike crossed his arms and waited for Luke to tell him what he needed investigating.
"What we are about to discuss is quite confidential Mr. Frost. For your eyes only. If you don't mind me asking, could you send your assistant away?" Looking over at Ana, Mike nodded.
"Ana, you should be heading off to school now anyways. Don't wanna be late, do you?" While she looked hesitant at first, Ana did as she was told. In the end, she didn't want to risk getting in the way of any business dealings.
Before she fully left, Ana leaned back in the door and waved goodbye. "I'll see you later Mike. You'll have to tell me how things go." Laughing nervously, Mike rubbed the back of his neck. Something told him he wouldn't be speaking of anything that happened here.
When Ana was gone, the mysterious man focused his attention back on Mike. "Thank you, now we can begin." Straightening his tie, Luke stood up straight. "I'm going to be upfront with you Mr. Frost. Me and my employer have known about you for quite some time now. You are the son of Tarot and Eeris Frost. A husband and wife Gym Leader duo." Opening his briefcase, Luke pulled out some pictures. Laying them out for Mike to see, Luke continued. "Ten years ago, they and their Pokémon died in the night due to a tragic accident. Faulty wiring caused the house to burn down." Feeling his mouth go dry, Mike could feel Emerald trying to mentally reassure him.
Not understanding what Luke was trying to get at, Mike was growing angry. "Why are you telling me all this? Are you trying to say that I'm responsible for the death of my parents? Is that it?" Shaking his head, Luke leaned forward.
"That's not at all what I'm saying Mr. Frost." Taking out more pictures, Luke showed them to Mike. They were photos of his burnt down house that he had never seen before. "What I'm trying to say, is that we believe faulty wiring wasn't responsible for that fire. Instead, we believe that foul play was involved." Taking out a file, Luke passed it over for Mike to read. It was a missing person report. "Not only that, but we believe that whoever killed your parents is targeting others." Quickly reading over the report, Mike realized that it was a Gym Leader named Minori Daigo. She was a fairly famous Ghost Type Gym Leader. Looking up at Luke, Mike handed him the report back.
"How did you get your hands on this report? This person didn't go missing all that long ago, it would still be an active case. Combined with how famous Minori is, getting any information that the authorities have should be next to impossible." Whoever this person and his employer were, they weren't kidding around.
Putting his hands on his briefcase, Luke got ready to spin it around. "That hardly matters at the moment Mr. Frost. What does matter is that my employer would like for you to return to the Johto region and investigate the murder of your parents, and the disappearance of Minori Daigo. If you are successful in your investigation, well…" Turning the briefcase around to show Mike what was inside, Luke had a slight grin on his face. "This is only half of what my employer is willing to pay." Having to brace himself on his desk, Mike nearly fell over at how much money was stashed in Luke's briefcase.
"You… really aren't joking… Are you?" Silently, Luke shook his head no. Unsure of how to proceed, Mike ran a hand through his hair. "So, to recap… All you want me to do is uncover the truth of my parents death, and Minori's disappearance, correct? You just… want me to find out how the two cases are connected, and who's responsible?" Standing back up, Luke crossed his arms.
"That's correct. If you do accept, you'll receive what you see here immediately. Then, upon completion of the job, you'll receive the other half." Holding his hand out, Luke waited for an answer. Feeling himself begin to shake, Mike knew there was only one true answer. Not only would he be getting paid, but he'd finally be getting closure to the darkest chapter of his life. Reaching out, Mike shook the Luke's hand.
"You have a deal. When should I leave?" Looking down at his watch, Luke checked the time.
"The next boat to the Johto Region from the Sinnoh Region departs in two hours." Realizing he only had two hours to get packed and down to the port, Mike began to panic. "If you ever need to contact us, all the information you need is in the briefcase. I hope to hear good things from you, Mr. Frost." Hardly processing that Luke had left, Mike burst into his room.
Quickly grabbing a bag for him and Emerald, Mike began to pack. Emerald followed closely behind Mike and tried to get him to slow down. "I know what you're trying to get at Em, but we gotta hurry! If we miss that boat, who knows how long it'll take for the next one to arrive!" Knowing that any further attempts to get Mike to slow down would be useless, Emerald chose to stay out of his way.
Once his things were packed, Mike moved onto packing a bag for Emerald. Since she didn't require as many items as Mike did, packing for her went by pretty quickly. Happy with what they had, Mike bundled up and set out with Emerald at his side. On the way out of the apartment, Mike took out his phone and called Ana's home phone. It rang a few times before Ana's father picked up.
"Hey Mike, what's up?" Normally, Mike would be surprised that Ana's father would be home to pick up the phone as he worked mornings. However, a co-worker of his was on sick leave so he had to switch shifts and cover for them.
Walking as he talked, Mike didn't want to slow down. "You aren't gonna believe this Joseph, but I just landed the mother of all jobs." Hearing Joseph laugh on the other side, Mike smiled. "Emerald and I are gonna be out of the office for awhile, not sure how long. Do you think that you could let Ana know that she's being temporarily promoted? I'll be upping her salary of course." Joseph could be heard laughing some more.
"This must really be some job Mike! Don't worry, I'll let Ana know. Is there anything specific you want me to tell her?" Taking a moment to think, Mike was about to say no when he remembered something important.
"Yeah, actually. Could you ask her to send any calls my way? Serious inquires only tell her. It'd be nice to have some jobs lined up for when I get back home. Gotta build my name, ya know?" If Mike just ignored every call that came his way after putting out an ad, that wouldn't look too good. It was important that those seeking out his services saw Mike as someone who was professional.
Hearing Joseph write down what he told him, Mike knew that Ana would get his message. "Alright Mike, I'll let her know. And hey, before I let you go, you should stop by more often. You and Emerald. Ana and I would love it if you stopped by more." Feeling his smile soften, Mike almost slowed down.
"Yeah… I'll make sure to do that. We'll see ya when we get back Joseph." After they said their goodbyes, Mike hung up his phone. "Alright Em, we've gotta stop by the bank first. After that, we've got a boat to catch."
Stopping by his bank, Mike deposited all the money that was in the briefcase. He'd rather leave it somewhere secure than lug it around with them. He made sure to keep enough with him in order to buy tickets for Emerald and himself though.
Finishing up the one thing they had to do before leaving, Mike and Emerald made their way to the port. Mike bought their tickets and soon enough they were on their way to the Johto Region. Staying above board so that Emerald could watch the water, Mike chose to sit at a nearby bench while Emerald leaned over the railing. While it made him nervous, Mike trusted her to be careful. That, and he was happy that Emerald was enjoying herself. Leaning back, Mike closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep. Since it was going to take sometime to reach Johto, Mike figured he could get a nap in. After all, he'd need all the energy he could get once him and Emerald began their investigation. As he felt himself begin to drift off, Mike couldn't help but wonder just how much had changed in the ten years he'd been gone...