Noir
By spheeris1
Pairing: Utena/Anthy [other implied relationships]
Warnings/notes: See 'Teaser' & 'Ichi'
~~~
'Why did you lie about your relationship with the deceased?' You ask, not sure if you really want to know the answer.
'That is none of your concern. I'll pay you for your services and consider this case closed.' 'Princess' tells you. And you know that she is evading the question. And you know it is none of your business. She has paid you for your time. As she said--case closed. But you don't buy that, do you?
The murkiness of it all is niggling at you. It twists your brain up. It raises your hackles.
Like any good gambler, you play your hand and hope that lady-luck smiles on you.
Because you'll need it. Oh…you'll need it…
'Does this look familiar?' And you hold up the ring you kept. You let the light shine on it and see it reflected in her eyes.
She says nothing. Her face is stone. Liquid and living pools become chips of long-buried ice…
'Pretty trinket, isn't it Princess?' You state with a lazy smile. Trying to draw her out, trying to get at the truth…
But it doesn't work. Lady-luck is being a bitch today.
'Not in the slightest.' 'Princess' replies.
She leaves a hefty stack of cash on your desk.
She walks out and slams the door.
And the only reminder that she was here is the scent of Chanel No. 5 hanging in your office.
~
Utena meets the guy at a park.
And he tells his story. How they grew up together. How their parents got divorced when they were young. How they only had each other. How they sometimes fought, but not seriously. Just like siblings do…that's all.
Certainly not enough for her to just disappear.
And Utena watches him speak, watches his eyes dart back and forth over the passing people.
Even beyond those people, watching the trees…watching the shadows…
Is he looking for cops?
Is he looking for a hit?
Or is he looking for something else completely…?
'I thought you couldn't take another case…thank you though, thank you so much. I don't know what I'd do without her…' He says softly, chipping away at a fingernail.
Utena doesn't do sympathy.
She feels no need to console him. She feels no need to offer compassion.
'Just send the installment amount and I'll get started then.' Utena says, standing up and walking away.
'You took the ring for yourself didn't you?' He asks quietly…too quietly…
And Utena pretends not to hear him. She just keeps walking, keeps on going, keeps ignoring that feeling deep inside of her.
That voice tells her that feelings never ever lie.
~
You awake in the morning. Alone.
And you think you must have dreamed it all…it was all a terrible and wonderful dream. Time out of time. A reality all its own.
You dig around in your musty boxes and pull out childhood keepsakes you would never admit to holding onto.
You tend to ignore your past. You don't want to remember the pain of being so young and vulnerable and naïve. You just don't want to remember at all.
Out come photos of your mother. So much more beautiful than you can recall.
Out come photos of your father. So much more handsome than you can recall.
Endless photographs and report cards and drawings and toys.
Endless memories…images forever tainted by the present.
You'll never be whole again.
You'll never be happy again.
And you cry into papers turned yellow over years, you crumble to the floor and clutch pictures to your chest.
You sob until your bones ache and you cannot see.
Fate had its way with you as a child, didn't it?
And though you think you have moved on, you are still there…trapped by your own emotions. You are forever buried alive.
~
People ask about it. They see it and assume the best.
Utena just laughs and does not answer.
The ring is on her finger. She cannot seem to find the will to take it off.
She feels connected somehow, she feels complete now…this ring makes her whole.
Utena looks for the girl, but never finds her.
Red-light districts.
Motels.
Bars.
Not a trace. Just gone. Or maybe she does not want to be found.
Utena flashes her picture around and gets nothing. She tells the young man that his sister is gone. Just…gone…
'I spend hours tending to the dead, now she is as good as dead. I thought we were safe…but I was only fooling myself I suppose. No one is safe. Ever.' And he looks at Utena with too sharp of a gaze.
As if he knows so much more than he is letting on.
He smiles sadly at her, pulling a white sheet over a long body.
'Say hello to her for me. Tell her I love her.' He whispers.
Utena walks out without a word. She walks all the way to her building. All the way to her office. All the way to her desk.
The light is already on and the seat is no longer empty.
'Who are you?' Utena asks, her hand moving quick to her gun. The chair turns around and all Utena can see is the shaft of light upon her brown neck.
'Himemiya Anthy. I need you to find someone for me…and you come highly recommended.'
~~~
TBC
