AN: Apologies for the untimely delay to this chapter. It was especially tricky to write since I wanted to tie up as much character development for Rise and Naoto before progressing further into the story. Rest assured that after this, you will all be enlightened to know why this was rated M for a valid reason.
Rise walked through the living room of the Shirogane estate, her eyes slowly drifting to marvel at its unorthodox architecture. She had only been in Naoto's house a handful of times and never really had a chance to sit down and take in all that was in it. Rise paced herself around the house and took a moment to look over the various photos by the side. She smiled to herself and bent low to observe several of them when Naoto was still growing up.
"Aww, you look so cute in these," Rise pointed out.
Naoto set down the book in her hand and left the couch to join Rise. Despite living with her Grandfather during the summer, she hadn't gone through the photos in so long. Looking at them sent a familiar wave of nostalgia.
Rise took one of the framed photos into her hand carefully and turned it to Naoto. "This is you and Touko, huh?"
"Yes, it is." Naoto observed the solemn look in her eyes through the photo. She remembered the day it was taken as though it were only yesterday.
"You look...kinda sad."
"It was shot a week or so after my parents' deaths. Touko used to visit me often to see how I was doing. I was still trying to adjust to the fact that my parents were gone."
"Oh," Rise said and slowly set the photo back on the table. She felt somewhat terrible for stirring unpleasant memories for Naoto. "I'm sorry."
"Don't be," Naoto said with a weak smile. She picked up one with her parents and gave it to Rise.
"This is your mom and dad?"
Naoto nodded. She was in between both of her parents with a large, wide eyed smile. It was one of the happier photos with her in it.
"Wow, your mom was gorgeous," Rise said in awe. Standing by Naoto's left side was her mother, whose long brown hair fell into gentle waves. She had Naoto's intelligent grey eyes and a petite face to match her soft features. "And your dad..." Rise looked at Naoto's father who stood regally over her right side with one hand on her shoulder. He looked just like an actor from one of the British detective films that Naoto and her watched. Rise could see the striking resemblance between Naoto and her father starting with their dark blue hair. "Now I know where you get your lady-killer looks."
"They were both detectives and worked together on several jobs. My mother was very intelligent and picked up the smallest of clues quickly. My father was very hands-on with his work. Together they were a force to be reckoned with."
"What happened to them?"
A shadow seemed to cross Naoto's face. "Being a detective comes with risks. They were working together on a case to catch a culprit for charges on a string of several murders. I think he caught on to them and...sabotaged their car on the way home."
Rise's mouth dropped slack. She couldn't find any words to comfort Naoto.
"It was difficult at first. I lost both my parents in one night."
"I can imagine." Rise returned the photo with the others. "But at least you had your grandfather to look after you."
Naoto smiled warmly. "Yes, despite the unfortunate turn of events I had him. Growing up here was an adventure on its own. Grampa let me follow him around his work and taught me the fundamentals of being a detective."
"Fundamentals? Like what?"
Naoto studied Rise very carefully. She looked eager to learn a lesson or two today, more so since their midterms were finally over.
"Body language," Naoto began. "You can tell a lot about someone by the way they carry themselves, how they dress and how they act."
"So, Naoto," Rise said with a sultry smile. "What can you tell about me?"
Naoto looked at Rise as if it were for the very first time. "I can be very blunt about this. Are you sure you want to know?"
"Just try me, Naoto-kun."
"...You're very materialistic." Naoto set her finger around the necklace on Rise and slowly dropped it to take her hand. She took note of the new rings she bought a few days ago while they were at Okina City. "But so much is to be expected of a former idol. In your world fashion means everything. You were used to having yourself on newspaper articles and billboards and was always expected to look your best."
"Naturally."
"However, your previous lifestyle came with an enormous amount of attention. It might be something you often deny, but the truth is you enjoy it. Which is why you decide to wear such risqué choice of clothing." Naoto gestured to the pink see-through blouse Rise was wearing today.
"It's called being a teenager, Naoto-kun," Rise countered.
Naoto grinned at the sight of Rise growing irritated. When the teasing proved too much, she stopped with the petty observations and decided to go into the little details. What she found next concerned her.
"You were crying last night."
It wasn't a question. Naoto carefully held Rise's cheek and wiped away some dried up fluid at the corner of her eye. Rise seemed a little surprised by Naoto's findings.
"I was so sure you wouldn't notice. I tried to cover it up as best as I could."
"You don't have to hide anything from me, Rise. You know I'm here for you. Do you want to talk about it?"
"Inoue-san stopped by the store yesterday. I was working the shop when he said he was scouting for shooting locations for a film I was supposed to do. He wanted to hear my answer a second time, face to face."
"And you said no."
Rise nodded. "He said he understood and that now he can finally focus on his new job, as Kanami's manager. But then he went on about me and the potential I had. He said I had a spark, that I learned fast, adapted well to new situations and that my acting skills were like a old pro." Rise looked down at her feet. "What the heck?!...that wasn't fair...after he made me answer...he never told me any of that when we were working together."
Rise began trembling and her eyes started to tear up.
"I...I don't even know why I'm crying. There's nothing to be sad about...Nothing."
Naoto had somewhat grown accustomed to these situations, especially around Rise. The past few weeks hadn't been easy on both of them.
"It's okay to cry."
"I...I lost everything. I don't know how, but I did." Rise pressed her head to Naoto's neck, tears streaming down her cheeks. "I don't know why I'm crying. I'm scared...I'm sad...What's going on?"
Naoto wrapped one arm around Rise. The other hand stroked her hair to soothe her. It didn't take long for Rise to cry her heart out. Through the intimate embrace Naoto could feel the warmth of Rise's body against hers. Despite holding her close countless times she could never ease the beating of her own heartbeat.
"You didn't lose everything, Rise. You have me. You have the others. There are people that need you." Naoto tightened the embrace for a fleeting moment. I need you, she whispered to herself.
"Stay by my side, Naoto-kun," Rise commanded with a shaky voice. "Just please, stay with me."
"Always."
An hour or two later, Naoto awoke on her bed with her arm extended where Rise lay beside her. Her arm had fallen asleep after the first fifteen minutes, and now she wished to revive it from its catatonic state. Slowly she eased her arm and Rise turned to her side, still tired from today's events. She couldn't pinpoint which was worse for Rise; the unsettling fact that her manager had moved on to create the next best idol, or the regret she might live with for making the wrong decision to quit.
Naoto took an uneasy breath and sat at the edge of the bed. To her, Risette and Rise were two sides of the same coin. Sure, Risette was just a persona created to be idolized by the masses, but it was still a part of Rise no matter which way she looked at it. Naoto took a sidelong glance at Rise and climbed out of bed.
While Rise was busy tackling her own problems, Naoto had to deal with hers as well. She opened the drawer, turned on the lamp beside the bed, and took the latest card from the Phantom Thief. She read the letter a second time.
Dear detective,
I have your prized possessions. Can you recover them? The game is afoot.
The Phantom Thief
The Phantom Thief. How absurd, she thought to herself. As if her current case wasn't enough on her plate. She was dealing with a criminal who claimed lives on the innocent townspeople of YasoInaba. The stakes were entirely different. And now she had to deal with a petty prankster guilty of mere housebreaking, theft and inscrutable threats.
"You're just a ruffian who broke into the Shirogane estate and threw down the gauntlet," Naoto said bitterly.
She didn't want to get entangled in this childish game, but to simply ignore it would only frustrate her. She took both the cards and turned off the lamp. Rise needed her rest, and despite both of them agreeing to solve it together, she didn't want to inconvenience her at the moment.
Naoto took a flashlight and walked to the study room in the darkness. When she was growing up in the estate the mere sound of the wooden floors creaking was enough to send her running back to her room. It wasn't like the other homes in Inaba. The Shirogane manor was so large that every sound echoed across the hallway eerily. There were times when Naoto thought it was haunted.
When she'd finally reached the room, she turned on the lights and let out a breath she didn't expect to be holding. She took a seat at the table and pulled out her notebook.
From the information she had gathered, the Phantom Thief bought the cards from the Shiroku store mere days before handing one of them to Rise at the hospital. She picked up one of them and caught the faint scent of citrus, a very weak cologne she guessed. Naoto couldn't shake the feeling that there was a secret in the cards, the only problem was she didn't know how to crack it.
She stood up from the desk and headed for the shelves of books in the library. Surely, there had to be something that would help her uncover the mystery behind the cards. She ran her finger through the multitude of novels and leather bound books that she was so fond of reading.
Surrounded by books, Naoto could only think back to when she was much younger. Touko and her often spent their days here or back in the rose garden, enjoying their youth to the fullest. After her parents passed away Naoto dove into reading the vast collection of detective novels, wanting to follow after her mother and father's footsteps. Her Grampa taught her some common tricks back in the day too. Sometimes he would leave cryptic messages concealed in invisible ink...
Naoto's eyes lit up almost immediately. She raced back to the cards and took them into her hands.
"Invisible ink. To think that he'd used a basic ruse."
Naoto made her way to the kitchen and turned on the stove. Carefully, she toasted the cards toward the fire until words began to appear. The trick was quite simple, one she almost easily missed. The citrus juices on the card burned first, making it legible. When the words finally formed a complete sentence she turned the stove off and adjusted the card to read it clearly.
"Eating letters with a red face," Naoto said out loud. It was riddle, and a simple one too. She headed for the door and opened her mailbox. As expected, there was the first of the stolen items, a detective badge Naoto made when she was younger.
"I didn't think Grampa still had this," Naoto said as a faint blush spread across her cheeks. "I guess he has a hard time throwing things away too."
Naoto entered the Shirogane estate and was surprised to see Rise standing at the staircase. She still looked slightly dazed from her slumber.
"I was wondering where you went. I was kind of worried."
"I just solved the first of the Phantom Thief's mysteries." Naoto held up the detective badge for proof.
"Is that what I think it is?" Rise met Naoto halfway and inspected the silver badge. Using her best Naoto impression, she said, "Detective Shirogane reporting for duty!"
Naoto's face flushed red. "H-Hey! I don't sound like that at all!"
Rise laughed heartily and returned the badge to its respective owner. "Cute toy."
"I suspect this Phantom Thief has more of these...past-times."
"And the clues?"
Naoto manifested a new card that came with the badge. In it was another riddle, but one she wasn't willing to solve until daylight.
"Well then, we better rest up. Looks like we've got ourselves another mystery to solve, detective."
"Agreed," Naoto said as she followed Rise back to her bedroom.
After a handful of riddles, Naoto and Rise managed to retrieve some of the stolen items; a ballpoint pen doubling as a telescope and a large digital watch with a modified back light used to stun enemies.
After the latest search they decided to take a break by the Samegawa flood plain and sat down on the benches. Naoto turned the watch over in her hand and smiled.
"I've always loved this sort of thing, ever since childhood. I preferred robots and cars rather than dolls and teddy bears. I liked high places too, I used to have a secret base in the trees. I enjoyed it."
Naoto ran her finger behind the watch's silver plating. It was much too large to fit a child's wrist, but the modification she did to it was so well constructed even her Grampa praised her when it was complete.
"Why?" Naoto asked solemnly. In her hand she clutched the watch into a fist. "Why couldn't I have been born male? It would have been much easier for me. I could have done what I wanted with gusto...It's funny isn't it?"
Rise reached out to Naoto's hand forcing her to relax her fist around the watch. "To be honest, I'm glad you're a girl."
"W-What? I mean, there's nothing good about it."
"I think there's lots of great things you can do when you're a girl, like our first slumber party. We wouldn't really have done that if you were a boy."
Naoto put up a wry smile. Rise did have a valid point.
"That was fun, right?"
"Yes, it was," Naoto admitted. Rise sidled up and rested her head on Naoto's shoulder. "When you had no idea who I was, before you know, did you like me as a boy?"
Rise studied the grass and the gentle summer breeze. "Yes and no."
Naoto let out a breath.
"I mean, you were plenty attractive as a boy. But that wasn't who you really were. It was a facade you put up to convince yourself that that was who you wanted to be. And now that I'm getting to know the real you...I like you a lot more. None of it feels like a lie."
"Even as a girl, you find me attractive?"
Rise laughed. The sound of her unbidden laughter sent chills down Naoto's spine. "You're one of the most attractive girls I've ever come across, Naoto-kun."
Naoto blushed at the compliment.
"You were really cool as a boy, but even cooler as a girl. It's like you have this gentle side to you now that's unexpectedly alluring."
"Alluring, huh?"
"Enough compliments about you. Why don't you try complimenting me for once?"
Naoto tilted her head to Rise's and inhaled. "You always smell nice, like flowers and citrus. I don't understand how girls can smell so good all the time."
Rise suppressed a smile. "That's hardly a compliment. Keep going."
Naoto paused and ran her thumb over the watch's glass surface. The slight movement caused the reflection to create a blinding light. "I liked you as Risette too."
Rise didn't smile, but she didn't frown either. She simply looked into the horizon as they sat on top of the hill overseeing Inaba.
"I've been thinking about that for a while now. Why my mind went blank thinking about Kanami. I mean, I ran away from showbiz because I was tired being an idol. And yet, I felt so angry about it. Why do you think that is?"
"Because Risette was Rise too."
"I had a feeling you'd know. I'm just upset it took me this long to realize it. Risette's name in lights, idolized by the masses...that was me too. I was afraid of losing that me. There's no way to become someone else. I ran away from my plain, gloomy self. Then I ran away from my idol self..."
"And who do you think you are, right now?"
"I guess I'm the homicide detective self. I would've run away from that too if I hadn't realized that I'm trying to become who I wanted to be." Rise smiled sheepishly. "I pick a role. When I'm through with it I continue chasing the real me by picking another role. But in the end, all those roles are me."
Rise straightened herself out. She stood across from Naoto with a gentle look on her face. "I don't want to run away anymore. I don't want to search somewhere else for myself. So I'll hang in there as the complete me."
Naoto slipped the watch into her pocket. "I'm so happy to hear that, Rise."
"You know, I'm so glad I came to this town," Rise confessed. "It's where I met you."
Rise raised her face to meet Naoto's. They were so close that one step would force them into a kiss. But Rise didn't force it and Naoto didn't indulge her desire.
"I wish time would just stop," Rise said and settled into an embrace. She felt so much better in Naoto's arms. It brought her a quiet comfort to have the very person she cared about hold her this way.
Naoto kissed the top of Rise's head and looked out into the horizon. Now that Rise knew who she really was, Naoto hoped that it would only be a matter of time before she'd find her way too.
As they walked down the Samegawa Flood Plain, a few thoughts lingered in Naoto's head. Through the pocket of her pants she held onto the large ballpoint pen. When the pen was still hers, she was just a child, dreaming of becoming a detective. But being a man or a woman, she never really thought about it. It might have been because of her lack of peers to compare herself to. She had no friends and was quite the outsider back then.
A single question presented itself to Naoto.
Why is it that, compared to the time she spent utterly alone, she worries now more when she's with Rise and the others?
Naoto's heart did a little flip in her chest. Rise slipped her hand into hers and seemed to sense a fraction of her thoughts.
"I feel that...I'm undergoing a change," Naoto said.
"Don't be afraid of it," Rise replied. She squeezed Naoto's hand encouragingly.
"I see. I'm afraid, you say." Naoto smiled weakly. She couldn't remember the last time she'd felt so vulnerable. "The need to change...and the desire to remain the same. They're mixed together and it...scares me."
Naoto felt smaller than ever before. She'd never expected to show such a side to Rise, but she was comfortable around her. They'd gone through so much together that it was inevitable for her to rely on Rise again.
"I haven't heard any word from my Grampa or Yukushiji, his secretary, for a while now. I thought he'd call at least once since his arrival in America."
Naoto thought it was a little odd, but she knew her Grampa would be in good hands. Yukushiji was not one to take his job lightly.
By the time they reach the Central shopping district the sun was beginning to set.
"I've been doing my investigating for the past few days. The lady at the Shiroku store confirmed that she last saw the same man walking around the area at sunset. If that's true then he's likely looking for his next hiding spot for one of the stolen items. We may be able to catch him in the act."
Rise leaned back against the wall and looked at Naoto. "It's weird to say, but it makes me kinda sad."
"You too?" Naoto had a feeling that this day would come soon. This little game they played was finally coming to a close. "The detective I once dreamed of becoming as a child...I feel like that's who I am now."
Naoto seemed to be brimming with renewed energy. "I have an inkling of what might be the last two things he intends to hide. If my deductions are correct he should be there," Naoto finished and pointed out in the distance.
Rise and Naoto didn't waste another second as they sprinted for Tatsuhime shrine. Surely enough, when they'd arrived the man in black was standing at the very center with his back against them.
Naoto stepped forward. There was something familiar about the dark suit jacket the man was wearing. The man turned around, suddenly alarmed by Naoto's presence.
"Wait, you're-"
The man in black brandished a knife in his hand, the cool mettle reflecting off the sunlight. Naoto stood her ground, still shocked from the unexpected turn of events.
"Naoto-kun!" Rise exclaimed and raced to protect the Detective Prince.
"W-Wait Rise that knife, it's not real!"
With the secret finally discovered, the man in black dropped his weapon and ran in the opposite direction. Rise was standing still confused and Naoto bent down to retrieve the item.
"This knife, it's one of the seven tools. It's a knife-shaped radio." Naoto pressed her index finger to its pointed tip and slid the swiss-army styled knife back inside. She lifted the same finger to Rise, revealing not a single scratch or laceration. "As I said, it was just a toy."
Rise remained silent. It looked so real it easily fooled her.
"But...Even so, what you did...What if the knife had been real!?" Naoto threw down her hat in frustration. "You would've been in grave danger!"
Rise did nothing but absorb all of Naoto's words.
Naoto groaned and took deep breaths to calm herself. When she was stable enough to carry a civil conversation she tried again. "Why?"
"Because that's what friends do. They protect each other, Naoto-kun."
Naoto sighed heavily. Of course it would be because they were friends. It was only natural instinct for one to protect those who were close to them.
"...And because I'm in love with you."
Naoto suddenly looked up, her face a mix of shock and embarrassment. She couldn't believe the stunt Rise was pulling now of all times.
"You're not making any sense."
"I mean what I said, Naoto. I love you!"
Naoto swallowed an invisible lump in her throat. She pretended not to listen to Rise's confession even though it was all she ever wanted to hear. For so many times, she'd denied herself the right time to admit her feelings, but now seemed to be a better time than any. Rise wasn't the same girl she was before. She was different now. And Naoto knew that much. Rise wasn't desperate or lost anymore. Somehow, that was enough to convince Naoto that her confession wasn't an act or a lie.
Rise was still waiting for a response, but Naoto knew of only one acceptable answer. In one swift motion, she grabbed Rise by the arm and pulled her hard to herself. Rise went limp in her arms, resting her weight against Naoto. Her arms wound around Naoto's neck and they kissed.
The kiss was anything but light and tender. Rise tilted her chin up and parted her lips. Naoto deepened the kiss, using the tip of her tongue to brush over Rise's. Their bodies fell into perfect alignment with each other like pieces in a puzzle. Naoto cupped the back of Rise's neck to hold her mouth right where she wanted her. The force was enough to startle Rise for a moment, but she didn't pull away. A small whimper escaped Rise's lips as Naoto deepened the kiss further until it grew heated and fell into a steady, passionate rhythm.
With closed eyes Naoto moved her hand from Rise's neck to her shoulder, from her shoulder to her neck. There was substance to her, warm flesh and lean muscles fit for a performer. Naoto grinned at her findings and slid one hand down Rise's hair. She pressed her palm against the small of her back and kissed the pulse point of Rise's neck. The mere action sent the starlet shuddering in her arms. Naoto paused only for a quick breather and resumed where she left off.
While kissing, Naoto pushed Rise back against the shrine's wooden walls. Rise's head fell back giving Naoto more access over her neck and throat. Without any warning Naoto nipped at Rise with a quick snap of her teeth. Rise grasped the ends of Naoto's loose collar with both hands on instinct. She flinched but didn't protest.
"I missed you," Rise whispered into Naoto's ear. She released a few heavy breaths and let out the faintest whimpers in between kisses.
"I did too," Naoto said, resting her palm on Rise's burning face. As sweet as the moment was, as beautiful as the girl she kissed, Naoto knew there were other unfinished matters that needed to be taken care of.
There was an abrupt cough that broke the brief silence forcing Naoto and Rise to turn in the said direction. Naoto's eyes widened gradually and Rise cast a sheepish glance to her side.
"Hey," Touko said awkwardly.
Naoto's heart dropped to her stomach. She wasn't sure how long Touko was standing there or how much she'd seen. But one thing was certain in her eyes, she'd seen enough to feel slightly uncomfortable.
"I-I thought you were supposed to be back in the city," Naoto finally said.
"I was. But I couldn't just leave without seeing the entire thing through."
Naoto raised an eyebrow. "And what exactly would that be?"
Touko produced a single card from her pocket, the same card stock used by the Phantom Thief.
"It was all three of us, actually. Yukushiji was working on behalf of his master while he left. Your grandfather orchestrated more than half the clues, this last one I made myself."
"But why?"
"You might not have noticed, but you grandfather has been saddened by your state of affairs lately. He told me this the last time I visited you before your kidnapping." Touko held the card between her hands. "He was concerned for you, Naoto. And to be frank, so was I. You lacked acquaintances to confide in and devoted every fiber of your being to work. Your grandfather wanted you to regain the joy you felt in days past, to regain the feelings when all you wanted to be was a detective, regardless of heritage or gender."
Naoto sighed and pressed a hand to her forehead.
"I'm sorry Rise. I implored Yukushiji to involve you of my own discretion. Naoto doesn't have many friends, but when I met you I knew you were trustworthy. I'm so sorry for everything." Touko bowed her head out of respect. Rise nodded in understanding.
Naoto put her hand on Touko's shoulder. "You were the last person I expected to be involved in all of this."
"Well then, it sounds to me like you need to brush up on your detective skills, Naoto," Touko countered. "Rise's turning you soft," she whispered.
"That's not true," Naoto said as quietly as she could. She pulled Touko aside to confront her about the whole situation privately.
"It's not a bad thing, really. In fact it's good for you. I haven't seen you this happy since...since we were young."
"What do you think Grampa would think?" Naoto asked. She took a quick glance at Rise who was paying homage to the shrine.
"About Rise?" Touko asked with a smile. "Do you honestly think seeing a girl would change your grandfather's feelings for you? Naoto he cares for you, more than you know. All he wants for you is your happiness."
"Thank you, Touko." Naoto felt as though a burden had been lifted. She took a long breath and gave her best friend a heartfelt hug. Touko was surprised at first but returned it with equivalent force.
"By the way, I'm being transferred to a new location. I wanted to tell you this before I left. I won't be back when you finish your work from here."
Naoto found herself unable to speak for a moment. Touko's voice was strained with a hint of sadness that it pained her to hear. They were close friends and on rare occasions at work partners even. It wasn't going to be the same without her there.
"I'll see you again. I know it," Naoto finally said.
Touko inhaled and exhaled through the embrace. It took all her energy to stop the tears swelling up in her eyes. She handed the last card to Naoto and tried a weak smile.
"And when we next meet I'll be an even better detective than you," Naoto added.
"In your dreams," Touko said as she grinned from ear to ear. "You still have a ways to go before besting me."
Naoto gave Touko one last hug before letting her go. Rise joined Naoto's side and Touko extended her hand out to shake. The moment Rise did she brought her ear to her lips.
"Take care of her, okay?"
"I will."
And with that Touko descended the flight of steps and down the Central shopping district. Naoto's hand slipped to take Rise's without the slightest sign of hesitation.
"This is the last challenge," Naoto began. "Are you ready?"
"Let's do it," Rise said with a smile.
Naoto read the writing on the card, "I did what you can't stand to at a place you'd be fond of. But underneath rather than inside."
"A place you'd be fond of," Rise said. She put a hand to her chin and grinned knowingly when she found the answer. "It's got to be somewhere high, like the secret base you told me about earlier."
"You remembered." Naoto nodded cheerfully. "The highest place in Inaba would be the hill. But now for the next part, what I can't stand to do..."
Rise walked up to Naoto and reached into her pocket. Her actions caught Naoto by surprise and in turn caused the detective's cheeks to burn bright red. Rise held up the knife-shaped radio for Naoto to see.
"You can't stand to throw things away."
"That's right!" Naoto exclaimed. "Now considering what's at the hill, the most likely answer is the trash can. Rise, you just might have what it takes to be a detective."
"I'll consider it. But for now I think I'll settle being your partner in crime."
Naoto suppressed a smile. "On second thought, I think you would make a better criminal."
When they reached the top of the hill the last item was taped at the bottom of the trash can. Naoto dusted off the dirt from its cover and studied it for a long time.
"I forgot this thing even existed. It's the Detective's Pocketbook." Naoto sighed. "All the things I had forgotten about are packed in here. I think Grampa wanted to remind me of them."
Naoto flipped through several of the pages, reminiscing on the notes she'd scribbled down in her youth.
"This childish game...He's selfish indeed," Naoto said and closed the book in her hand. "Forcing me to recall all this now...I was trying so hard not to be underestimated, not to be condescended to..."
Rise watched Naoto pace along silently, taking in all that the Phantom Thief had to say. She was upset, but like before she managed to simmer down after a couple of minutes. Naoto took a seat by the bench and looked out into town. Rise joined her too.
"If I solved this town's murder case, then everyone would accept me. They would acknowledge me as the fifth in the Shirogane lineage of detectives. Or at least that's what I told myself."
The faint summer breeze blew against Naoto and Rise. With the gentle winds blowing against them the moment felt familiar, like the exact same setting when they first met on the hill.
"I wanted to be accepted. I wanted to be needed. That's why I fretted and stood on my tiptoes and focused solely on solving the case. But the original reason why I wanted to become a detective," Naoto began. She held the blue pocketbook in her hand and gave it to Rise. "It was because mysteries intrigued me and I could help people by solving them."
Rise flipped through the pages, briefly reading through the sporadic riddles and cluster of theories and puzzles in it.
"Do you recall the time I faced myself in the TV world? It was my task to accept the self that yelled 'I want a reason for me to stay.' But my 'reason to stay' was not solely to solve the crime." Naoto took a deep breath, her voice trembling slightly. "You, Rise. Everyone. You gave me a place to stay."
A few stray tears began streaming down Naoto's cheeks.
"I have to be an adult. I have to be a man. With that kind of thinking I was running away from myself. I don't need to look for something to change or something to accomplish. I only need to have faith in myself. I finally think that I can accept myself. That I'm a woman. That I haven't yet become the detective I wanted to be. I'm a woman and a detective. One who's seeking the truth with you and the others."
Naoto stood up and smiled through her tears. She wiped them away with the back of her hand and Rise pulled her into a comforting embrace. Naoto took even breaths to calm herself. She held onto Rise as if her life depended on it.
"When I'm with you I become scared. I'm afraid that the instant I admit the truth, everything will spill out," Naoto confessed. "But I need to say it, my true feelings."
Naoto pulled away to look at Rise. "At first I wasn't sure if what I was feeling was right. I couldn't accept what my heart desired because the thought of it all frightened me. To be a woman in love with another woman..."
"Naoto..."
"I wasn't sure who I was before. But now I do. And now that I know, it's like I can see everything from a clear perspective. I'm not afraid of who I am anymore, and I'm not afraid to admit that my feelings for you are genuine and true." Naoto cupped Rise's face in both her hands. "I love you, Rise Kujikawa."
Rise and Naoto pressed their foreheads against each other gently.
"That took you long enough," Rise whispered happily.
They gazed at each other. The sun was inches away from setting. The warm summer sun would retire for the day and the cool full moon would settle over them. Up on the hill Naoto imagined everyone but she and Rise had been wiped off the face of the Earth. Only they two remained.
Not wanting to waste another second, Rise reached up and kissed Naoto. It was simple and light, but she knew they'd have plenty more days and nights for more kisses.
"I love you too, Naoto-kun."