A/N: This chapter breaks pattern a bit with regards to length, but there was really no helping it; the extra length is necessary. This is also the debut of the other canon characters (besides Keiko) who I took liberties in characterization with—Baaya and Superintendent-General Hakuba. While Baaya's characterization is pretty much my own creation, Superintendent-General Hakuba Tsuyoshi, as we've chosen to name him, is as much my beta and instigator miladyRanger's as he is mine. Our version of Hakuba's father was created for a shared project that we've since abandoned, and while we've long forgotten whose idea he was, she was first to write his dialogue. Fortunately, she's enjoying this thing as much as I or any of you are, so she allowed me to use him in it.
It should go without saying, but I do know that neither his first name nor the one I give for Baaya are canon.
Chapter 6: A Human
Hakuba Tsuyoshi's first impression of Saguru—just Saguru, then-was of a teenager in a poorly fitting suit, strutting around a crime scene like he had all the rank and authority that Tsuyoshi did-and somehow not managing to look ridiculous, because everything he was saying was right.
Really, the fact that he'd been able to meet the boy at all was a huge coincidence.
Sayuri had cajoled him into a trip to England, to visit her cousins. The one who worked at the Yard had casually mentioned that they'd managed to get "one of those kid detectives your Japanese papers are always going on about." When questioned, he'd admitted he wasn't sure exactly how old the boy was, only that he was half-Japanese, answered to Saguru, and could solve a case faster than some divisions together.
He'd been intrigued, but not really enough so to pursue the matter—until he went to the Yard with the cousin for a tour and they happened to catch sight of a round-faced blond tagging along behind a group of homicide detectives.
Well, I've never actually seen Kudou-kun or Hattori-kun in action, Tsuyoshi remembered thinking. It could be interesting.
Interesting was certainly a word for it.
"Keating, what did Mrs. Sullivan say she was doing at 6:15?" the boy questioned sharply, in a voice that seemed too deep for the young features it came from.
"She was taking a walk in the park, she said," Keating, a highly-ranked detective replied.
Saguru glanced back at the body, and didn't quite cover up a wince. In all of their time at the crime scene-the sidewalk in front of a modest little flat with flowered windowboxes and wrought-iron railings alongside the stairs-Saguru hadn't managed one good look at the corpse without looking upset. It was never revulsion, either, oddly enough. He always looked sad.
The ability to get past the idea of a stranger's corpse as "gross" and on to the idea of it as "sad," was fairly impressive in a teenager. Tsuyoshi wasn't sure what to make of the fact that, for all of his experience with cases like these, the boy had never made the next step to simply considering the body as evidence.
"You'll recall that it was raining yesterday around that time," Saguru said.
A few of the gathered officers, as well as the aforementioned Mrs. Sullivan, the landlady, her husband, and her daughter, variously nodded or made noises of assent.
"It was a bit wet, during my walk, but I don't see what it has to do with-" Mrs. Sullivan started.
"If you look at the victim's shirt, you'll see that it's discolored in multiple places, in ways that aren't consistent with blood spatter," Saguru said. "They are, however, consistent with the damage that occurs when silk fabric becomes spotted with water. Since the," a pause, that anyone other than Tsuyoshi might not have noticed, "degree of rigor mortis indicates that the time of death was between the 6 and 7 o' clock hours, this makes Mrs. Sullivan the most likely culprit, especially given her motive."
"Motive?" Inspector Harring, the ranking officer on-scene, asked.
"Mr. Sullivan looks inordinately distressed for the death of a tenant that he maintains he had almost no contact with," Saguru said. He turned to Mr. Sullivan. "So, how recently did you tell your wife about the affair?"
"T-there was no—" Mr. Sullivan stammered.
"Oh, why don't you stop lying?" Mrs. Sullivan snapped. "I'm going to jail over it, anyhow, the least you can do is admit you cheated on me with that worthless little-"
"There are children present!" Sayuri's cousin interrupted.
"My daughter's heard worse," Mrs. Sullivan said. She turned to stare at Saguru. "And whatever the h*** that is, it's no child."
Keating got out a pair of handcuffs as two officers Tsuyoshi didn't know moved to restrain her.
Saguru didn't snarl back, or frown, or do anything, really-he just sort of froze, for half a second, and then turned back to the police. "Do you need me to fill out any paperwork, or is it all right for me to go, now?"
"Actually, I'd like you to meet someone," Sayuri's cousin said, pushing Tsuyoshi forward. "This is Hakuba Tsuyoshi, the Superintendent-General of the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Force. He's also my cousin-in-law."
Saguru stared up at him, looking mildly panicked for all of a second before bowing deeply. "Yoroshiku onegaishimasu," he said, a faint British accent to the words.
"Yoroshiku," Tsuyoshi replied. "I'm very impressed with your work," he added, in English.
"I'm glad I was able to be of service to the police force," Saguru replied, formally.
"I'm sure they're glad of your help," Tsuyoshi said. "How many people, at your age, are handling cases like that…"
"I've heard that you have a few, over in Japan," Saguru said, the first hint of life sneaking into his tone-if Tsuyoshi read it right, that was suppressed amusement. "Kudou Shinichi seems worth meeting, from the news articles."
"You can read Japanese, as well?" Tsuyoshi asked, surprised.
"Father was born there," Hakuba said, softly. Tsuyoshi didn't miss the odd exchange of looks between his cousin and Inspector Harring, but he filed it away for later, and focused on the discussion at hand.
"Well, in that case, perhaps I could send you the occasional case summary, and ask your opinion?" Tsuyoshi offered. "That is, if the Yard wouldn't take it as my trying to steal their youngest detective away."
"It's up to Saguru whether he wants to accept or not, and I'm sure the chief will agree," Inspector Harring said, with a small laugh. "We don't pay him."
"That sounds very interesting," Saguru said. "If you're sure you wouldn't mind…" He pulled a notebook out of one of his pockets and wrote for a few moments, then handed the paper to Tsuyoshi. The email address was written in neat, slightly looping letters, and it soon found a home on Tsuyoshi's desk at the precinct when he returned to Japan.
Though he kept in touch with Saguru on his return to Japan, he forgot entirely about the odd exchange between Sayuri's cousin and the Inspector. That was, at least, until he sent Saguru an email about a particularly interesting locked room case that Division One had tried to throw at Kudou, only for him to pass it up so he could take a trip to America with his parents.
After two weeks without a response, Tsuyoshi had gotten a little worried, and called Harring.
"It's about Saguru, isn't it?" Harring had asked, almost rhetorically. "I guess he isn't in contact with you, either. There was a bad case a few weeks ago, so we thought he needed some time to himself, but we're getting concerned now..."
"You haven't heard from him?" Tsuyoshi asked, alarmed. "Can't you get in touch with his parents?"
There was a telling silence.
"What's the boy's situation, Inspector?" Tsuyoshi asked, a bit more gently.
"We've never been precisely certain," Harring admitted.
"What?" Tsuyoshi demanded.
"He was being helpful, and the suspects tended to confess themselves, so it didn't seem likely that he was planting evidence, but-" Harring broke off. "We're...fairly certain that his father passed away at some point."
"And that's all you know about him?" Tsuyoshi asked.
"That's all we knew," Harring corrected. "We've been investigating. It's...er, it's not good."
Tsuyoshi used the same tone he used on his own subordinates. "Tell me."
"We can't find what school he goes to," Harring said. "Actually, we can't find evidence that he goes to school. No-one with his first name and description attends school in London, period. Keating's been looking for his citizenship record and isn't doing much better."
"Do you even know his surname?" Tsuyoshi asked.
"Ah, not—no, no we do not," Harring said. He sounded very nervous, which Tsuyoshi felt was wise.
"I'm going to do my own investigation into this matter," Tsuyoshi said. "I trust that you've learned from this experience, Inspector?"
"Uh, y-yes?" Harring stammered.
Tsuyoshi was fairly certain that was a lie, and he was also quite sure he didn't care. If Saguru had avoided given a surname, did not attend school, and didn't speak of his parents-the chances that he was a runaway of some sort were very, very high, especially given his very careful politeness and poorly-fitting clothes. The evidence Tsuyoshi had did not add up to a pleasant picture, and he'd only met Saguru in person once, for all their email correspondence. Scotland Yard should have put this together long ago.
He sent another email to Saguru-this one quite cryptic, about a missing persons case in the London area that he'd taken an interest in and a meeting he'd like to have with Saguru about it-and then had a serious discussion with his wife. The last step of his plan was the Herculean task of attempting to set up the Tokyo MPD to handle a few days without his presence-but he ultimately managed it, and made it onto a plane to London.
He was only waiting at the cafe he'd designated as meeting place for a few minutes when Saguru showed up.
He was still wearing a suit that wasn't quite small enough for him, his hair was disheveled, and he seemed to be limping a bit, but seeing him took an enormous weight off of Tsuyoshi's mind. In that moment, he realized that he was certain of his course of action.
"Superintendent-General Hakuba," Saguru said, sounding a bit winded. "I received your email."
"So I see," Tsuyoshi said. He glanced deliberately at Saguru's leg. "Are you injured?"
Hakuba made a vague waving gesture. "It's quite minor. Nothing to concern yourself with. Now, this case-"
"A teenage detective who regularly spoke with the police dropped out of contact without warning for...hmm...three weeks," Tsuyoshi said. "I think you've already contributed greatly to the case."
Saguru stared at him, wide-eyed and pale.
"Please, sit down, you look unwell," Tsuyoshi said.
Saguru inclined his head and took a seat. "I apologize for worrying you. I was occupied with other matters and lost track of time, somewhat."
"Schoolwork?" Tsuyoshi asked, testing.
Saguru studied his face. "So, the Yard has finally taken an interest in what I do when I'm not doing their jobs for them," he said, resignation in his tone. "That was inevitable, I suppose."
"You could have told me that you were homeschooled," Tsuyoshi said.
"You would, in that case, want to meet my parents, I think," Saguru said. "That won't be possible. I am trying to study, independently, but my efforts in that directions wouldn't satisfy any set of curriculum requirements I'm familiar with. I think, in this situation, honesty is best. I am not attending school or replacing that attendance with anything similar, at the moment."
"Because you have other things to attend to," Tsuyoshi said, disheartened. "Such as, I imagine, supporting yourself."
Saguru nodded, grimacing. "It's not...something I wished to trouble the Yard with."
"I imagine that Keating won't find any records for you under your current name, either," Tsuyoshi said. "You're obviously familiar with the police; if you're in a situation that required you to change your name to avoid being found by someone, I'm sure they could—"
"It's not the sort of situation they need to get involved in," Saguru said firmly. "I wasn't—hurt, or anything like that. It is…complex. To be plain, it would be better for all involved parties if my mother were not to be aware of my current location. But it makes things a bit challenging for me, because it leaves me without legal identification."
"I may be able to help you with that," Tsuyoshi said.
Saguru blinked at him.
"Understand, my wife and I are seldom home," Tsuyoshi said. "You'll spend most of your time with our housekeeping staffs or alone. But I am offering you a permanent roof over your head, food, clothing, a small monthly allowance...and a last name, if you'll have it."
Saguru gaped at him for a few seconds. "...An adoption?" he finally managed, voice slightly shaky.
"If you're willing," Tsuyoshi said. "We can have fostering paperwork drawn up if you'd prefer, but I think adoption would be simpler."
"That would be...you are incredibly generous, I don't—I don't think I can accept—" Saguru stammered.
"And I don't think I can allow one of the most skilled young detectives I've encountered to remain in this situation," Tsuyoshi said. "My wife has agreed to it. We have an apartment in London that you can use for now, if you'd prefer—but I hope you'll decide to come to Japan eventually."
"Y-you know nothing about me," Saguru managed. "Are you quite certain—"
"I know that you continue solving murders even though you can barely stand to be near a corpse," Tsuyoshi said. "That tells me a lot about who you are."
Saguru made a soft choking sound, then nodded jerkily. "I-if you're sure. If you're absolutely sure, I would truly appreciate it."
Saguru didn't come back to Japan with him, not for six months. He spent that time catching up on schoolwork and solving an impressive number of cases with Scotland Yard—until KID appeared in Japan, and Tsuyoshi got an excited overseas phone call.
The suit he wore to his first heist fit perfectly.
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Hakuba Tsuyoshi glowered at her from beneath thick, white brows, his hands folded on his desk. Chikage shifted nervously in her chair. Phantom thieves, even retired ones, didn't belong in police precincts.
"I'm just concerned that this…rivalry is interfering with Kaito's school life," Chikage said carefully.
"Saguru isn't the one who disrupts class," Tsuyoshi replied. "And you aren't the only one whose son speaks with them."
"Kaito's pranks are harmless," Chikage sniffed.
"Saguru comes home with his hair and clothing dyed on a regular basis," Tsuyoshi said. "He insists that it's a mere annoyance, but I'm at the point of complaining to the teacher. Ridiculous verbal accusations don't merit attacks or property damage."
"Kaito uses washable dyes," Chikage said. "If that's changed, we will be having a talk. "
Tsuyoshi sighed. "I'd just hoped for a more normal school life for him."
"He's hardly an ordinary boy," Chikage pointed out.
"Do you say that because of what you've heard from your son, or because of the background check you ran on him?" Tsuyoshi asked, almost innocently.
"Is monitoring investigations into your son really a good use of police resources, Superintendent-General?" Chikage asked, mirroring his tone.
Tsuyoshi's feigned joviality fled. "When I have reason to think someone might be seeking him, with ill intent, and when I have little idea what your intent is—yes, yes it is."
Well, there's something I never expected to have in common with the Superintendent-General. Now, how to say, "Who's after yours?"
"There was a particularly odd interaction between him and Kaito a few weeks ago, and I was present," Chikage lied. "It occurred to me that I was taking the whole matter of Saguru-kun's accusations less than seriously, and that I might be making a mistake by doing that. But, if I can ask—why are you concerned someone might be looking for him? Is it about a case?"
Tsuyoshi shook his head. "I hardly think that's any of your business, Kuroba-san. Saguru values his privacy and I can grant him that much."
So…not a case. Perhaps, related to his adoption somehow? This kid is just a bundle of mysteries, isn't he?
"Well, if that's all you came to discuss, I think it would be best if I returned to my work," Tsuyoshi said. "I trust you can see yourself out?"
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Saakamoto Rinko, longtime servant to the Hakuba family and as such known to most of them only as "Baaya," frankly, thought of Saguru as her grandson.
How else could she approach the situation? She had no children or grandchildren of her own, and even though the Hakuba family had many children, her employer's branch had remained childless. Until, out of nowhere, Tsuyoshi had shown up in Japan with a young man, already a teenager, and announced that he and his wife had adopted.
Well, it hadn't been what she'd expected, but she was ready to do her best work for the family. Especially since the boy seemed uncomfortable in the house. After Tsuyoshi took her aside and briefly explained what he knew of the boy's background, she understood why, at least to some extent. There was no knowing exactly how long young Saguru had been on his own, but it seemed to have been some time.
It was a good thing her employer was doing, giving such a determined child a home, and she had wanted to help from the start. Particularly since she knew that for all Tsuyoshi's good intentions, it would take a true miracle for him to be home more than one or two nights a week. While he was in Japan, Saguru would be in her care. And, by how standoffish and quiet he was at the start, she would have her work cut out for her.
But the trick of a housekeeper's work is in small tasks, done over and over. She'd seen the child's eyes soften the first time she called him "Saguru-botchama," even as he protested the "excessively respectful" title. To tell the truth, she'd been hoping to eventually move on to calling him "Saguru-kun," but it was clear that the honorific "-botchama" meant something to him. So she kept it, almost as a term of endearment.
She kept track of the foods he did and didn't like, and made a point not to move around the house too quietly after the first time she startled a scream out of him. She stocked the library with Sherlock Holmes novels—his favorite, Tsuyoshi said—and bought him an Inverness jacket when the weather got cold. And she tried not to question his odder requests—but every once in a while, he came up with something a bit too odd to simply accept and ignore.
"I'm not certain we can keep a hawk in the city, Saguru-botchama," she said carefully, frowning at her employer's son.
"I've done the research," Saguru protested. "I'd need to take it out flying regularly, but there are places where I can do that within driving distance."
"Taking care of it will require a lot of work, and it will not be part of my job," she said. "I am not paid to feed a large carnivore rodents every day, and I'm sure your father will agree with me."
"I want to be the one to take care of it," Saguru said.
"You can't just decide you don't want it anymore and take it back—"
"I know that!" Saguru interrupted, in an unusual show of rudeness. "I just…I used to have a bird. I miss having that. Please?"
Her eyebrows rose. It wasn't often that Saguru spoke of the times before he'd come to live with them. It seemed he was quite serious about this matter.
"I'll speak to your father," she said, and Saguru grinned, eyes alight.
They did, in the end, get the hawk, and Saguru proved to be an exceptional master to it. He took full responsibility for its feeding and care, and was remarkably skilled in training it. He always kept it on its tether around the house and even cleaned up the feathers it shed. His sole act of irresponsibility was to name the clearly female bird "Watson."
Well, that and a certain incident, a few nights after what Saguru told her had been a particularly maddening KID heist. She was doing some evening housecleaning when she realized that Watson's cage was open and empty, and when she went to ask Saguru about the matter, she found him missing, as well. She searched the house for some time until she noticed the open window in Saguru's room and leaned out, to see her grandson in all but blood crouched on one of the manor's Western-style gables, while Watson, her wings unfurled, perched on his back. Saguru's wings were unfurled as well, in their own way—he wore the Inverness, and it flared and snapped in the wind. Watson was tethered to his gloved right wrist, while his left hand pressed down against the roof's center beam. His eyes were closed, and he seemed to be enjoying the night breeze.
"Enjoying the evening air, Saguru-botchama?" she asked, teasing.
"It's nice," Saguru said, softly, casual as if he'd been standing next to her inside the house.
"Be careful," she said, with a soft laugh, returning to her cleaning.
"I always am!" Saguru called after her.
But if he was, why did he always return from his trips to England looking like he'd seen the worst of a fight? Tsuyoshi insisted that his son be allowed privacy, but she ached to intervene, to demand to know what he was doing while he was away and whether it was truly dangerous. She doubted she'd receive genuine answers, though.
For all that she loved him, young Saguru seemed determined to remain somewhat of a mystery.
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"He's a dear boy," the old woman said, smiling over her tea. "A delight to have in the house."
"And the hawk isn't a problem?" Chikage asked, skeptical.
"Oh, no, he looks after Watson himself," the housekeeper said. "His father insisted. I haven't had to so much as dust up a feather."
I remember how bad Toichi used to be about that…but Kaito's always been very good about cleaning up after the doves when they molt, Chikage reflected. Possibly because he's worried a stray feather will give away one of his tricks.
"Could you tell me a little bit about him?" Chikage prompted.
"Hmm, well…he doesn't really like the taste of fish…oh, and he's very fond of Sherlock Holmes and tailored clothing," the housekeeper said, enthusiastic. "He usually does the dishes himself unless it's a heist night or he has a great deal of homework…He gets very impatient with traffic jams, even though he doesn't drive…"
None of this is useful! Chikage thought, frustrated.
"But of course that's not the sort of thing you're interested in at all, is it?" the woman asked, giving Chikage a searching look. "The Superintendent-General told me about what you're doing. I don't really understand why you think you have to investigate Saguru-botchama, but do stop. He hardly needs any more difficulty in his life."
More difficulty? On top of what? Chikage thought. Welll, on top of working with the police as a teenager, and being half-Japanese and half-English when both countries aren't as welcoming of outsiders as they could be…and then there's the matter of the adoption.
I didn't think about it until now, but, before he was adopted…where was he?
"So, I'm afraid I won't be assisting you in your investigation," the housekeeper continued. "Feel free to finish your tea before you go."
Chikage hadn't even tried her tea, so she sipped at it, out of politeness. It was incredibly over-steeped, and so bitter as a result that she almost choked.
Across the table, the housekeeper did a poor job of hiding a smile.
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What walks on four legs when it is morning, on two legs at noon and on three legs in the evening? A human.
-Oedipus Rex by Sophocles
A/N: So, there's Tsuyoshi and Baaya. Their names were chosen to be older-sounding Japanese names; the meanings aren't especially symbolic in this case. (miladyRanger's still annoyed with me after the last time I went overboard with Japanese name symbolism, so I thought I ought not.)
I am very aware of the lack of realism in the way that the adoption in this chapter proceeds. Please accept the fluff as it comes (and assume that Tsuyoshi took advantage of his high place in the Japanese police force, just a little bit).
Edit: The dialect thing is addressed on AO3 so I've deleted my requests for help with the problem here (they're available unaltered except for strikethrough on AO3) because I have a tendency to get reviews on things years after I write them and while writing feedback is always useful, tech help with a specific problem has a deadline.
I loved hearing your predictions last chapter, so if you'd like to make more, I'd love to hear those, too. Writing feedback is also appreciated. I'm still on Tumblr as ninthfeather and fic-related stuff can still be found under the "riddle in reverse" tag, so you can always leave things there, too. Thanks for reading!