The next time Aomine found the Phantom it wasn't even on purpose and it just about gave him a heart attack. He wasn't even on a job; he was just trying to get something to eat.
"Holy shit!" Aomine exclaimed when he noticed the man sitting across from him at the burger place. He was pretty sure he saw some amusement hidden in that blank expression as the Phantom continued to sip on what looked like a vanilla milkshake. In retaliation Aomine stole the milkshake and took a long sip from it before putting it back in front of the, now definitely not amused, assassin.
"You shouldn't take things from others without asking, Aomine-kun. It's rude." The other said, taking a napkin and wiping the straw before taking another sip.
"So is killing people. You've got no issue with that." Aomine said. The place was practically empty, and they were at a secluded enough table that Aomine felt safe talking about that. "Also, weren't you the one who kissed me last time we met? What the hell is with this wiping the straw shit?" He added.
"You curse quite a bit." The Phantom observed without answering his question.
"I assure you I do worse than that." Aomine deadpanned as he unwrapped his burger. "So, dose this count as finding you? Because I'd like to be able to report to Akashi that you're working for us." He said before taking a bite.
"I'm afraid this more qualifies as stumbling upon me, not finding."
Aomine rolled his eyes, but couldn't argue with that. Well, he could, but it wouldn't be a very good argument. "Can I at least get your name? You know mine." Aomine said, pointing a fry at the other, who took it from him in a show of hypocrisy.
"I know yours because you are incompetent. If I so easily gave you my name I would also be incompetent." The Phantom said, dipping the fry in his milkshake before eating it.
"It's not incompetence. It's existing. You can get information on literally anyone else in the world for the right price, except for you." Aomine complained.
"You know, I don't think you'd make a very good sales man." The Phantom said as he stole another of Aomine's fries. "You have an opportunity here to try and convince me to work for Akashi, and you're instead complaining about not knowing my name."
"If I were trying to sell something I'd hire Kise. I'm just trying to save my own skin. Akashi's going to either have or kill you one way or another. He doesn't lose. But he told me to employ you, so I'd like to do that before he decides he underestimated my usefulness and kills me. And then he'd probably kill Satsuki, because she'd riot if I died."
"Why should I work for someone like that?" The Phantom asked him with a tilt of his head.
Aomine thought about that for a minute, trying to decide the best approach. "Do you remember Haizaki? The original Copy Cat Killer before Kise replaced him?"
The man across from him looked a bit confused by the change of subject, but nodded. "Yes." Haizaki had been something else. He would not only steal someone's killing method and use that, but he would then find the original killer and kill them the same way, so that they couldn't kill that way again. It was more stealing than copying since the original killers certainly couldn't use the same tactics anymore, what with being dead and all. Kise also copied other people's killing styles, but he only went after the original killer if he was hired to do so. "I didn't much care for his work, so forgive me if I'm not remembering things right, but was he not found in a river some time later? His heart was missing too if I recall the news correctly. It was rather brutal, but I can't say that I felt much sympathy. Haizaki was, after all, a rather unpleasant person. Though I suppose I shouldn't speak ill of the dead." The Phantom said idly, taking a sip of his milkshake.
"Yeah, you've got it right." This time it was Aomine who dipped a fry in the Phantom's milkshake before eating it, earning an unimpressed look. "I was there when it happened. Akashi had apparently told him that Kise was replacing him, and Haizaki wasn't happy. I was in Akashi's office getting a new assignment when Haizaki burst in with a group of five other guys. I was gonna hang back anyway just to see what happened, but Akashi told me to stay out of his way. He rolled up the sleeves of his suit, picked up a letter opener, and killed all of them without getting even a drop of blood on his suit. Only two of the other guys have been found so far. And then he turned back to me and smiled as he apologized for the disturbance and stepped over their bodies like they were nothing to pick up my file for me."
Aomine remembered that nught very clearly. He'd been working for Akashi for a year at that point, and was kind of curious about what the other could do. He'd heard stories that hinted that the red head didn't need others to do his dirty work for him, but hired them just to save time, but he wanted to see for himself. So, he had planned to sit back and watch the fight, and if Haizaki lived, kill him before he left just because the guy pissed Aomine off. But then he'd watched as Akashi killed them all, one by one, cutting out their hearts, with a letter opener of all things, despite having a perfectly good knife in his desk drawer, and Akashi's crazed smile hadn't faltered once. "Daiki, I'm terribly sorry for this interruption. I assure you, it won't be happening again. Now, back to business. Here is the file of your next target. I would appreciate if you could get the job done as soon as possible. Please take Shintarou with you. I hear the locks to the building your target is staying in are quite intricate, and he is the best at breaking and entering." That was when Aomine decided that he never wanted to be on Akashi's bad side.
"I don't understand your sales pitch." The Phantom said, the corners of his lips turning ever so slightly downwards to form a, barely there, confused frown. "I'm not particularly fond of Haizaki, but that does not mean that I want to work with Akashi just because he killed him."
"Don't say with when you talk to Akashi. You'd work for him. Not with him. With sounds too much like you're his equal, and Akashi likes to be above everyone. You'd be working with me. He'd be sure to correct you."
Kise had made that mistake once. He'd very cheerfully told Akashi that he was looking forward to working with him, and the glare Akashi had given him had been chilling. Like shattered ice, Kise's smile had dropped. "With me, Ryouta? I'm afraid you are mistaken. You work for me. Under me. Never with me. That would imply that I need your help to do my work. I do not. The only people you will be working with are Daiki, Shintarou, Atsushi, and Satsuki. The only exception being if someone new were to join. Then you would be working with them as well. But you work under me, and would do well to remember it."
"You still aren't selling him very well." The Phantom pointed out, taking another of Aomine's fries.
"I'm not trying to sell him. I told you, if I were selling something I would hire Kise to do it for me. After all, when he isn't killing people, he models in adds selling things. I'm giving you a warning. Akashi wants you to work for him. You will. Or he'll kill you. It's just a matter of how long he's willing to wait before he gives up on me and approaches you himself."
"Why do you work for him? He seems like the kind of guy you would usually go after since he's the kind I would go after if I didn't know he had several assassins on call. He's running a monopoly by killing off his competition, even though he doesn't need to since he is plenty skilled, and he kills anyone who gets in his way, regardless of their circumstances."
"I thought about it. That's actually how I met the guy. I was trying to kill him. The wife of a killed business man hired me for it. It didn't go over so well, but he offered me a good deal to work with him. The same one I told you about. A large sum of money, and the same types of hits I already took." Aomine narrowed his eyes at the Phantom. "If you're looking for a boss who's a good guy you're not going to find one in this career. If you hadn't noticed, we aren't the good guys, and we shouldn't claim to be. I'm sure you can justify all of your killings; I've seen their files and they are scum, but murder is murder. We kill people. We are the bad guys. So is Akashi, but he's a good one to have on your side. That's why I work for him, and why I recommend you work for him too." Aomine balled up the wrapper of his burger and ate the last fry.
The Phantom seemed to be considering his words. "Thank you, Aomine-kun. That was your best sales pitch yet. Now, you just need to manage to find me without it being an accident caused by both of us needing food."
Aomine grinned at him. "We'll consider that meeting our third date."
"I wasn't aware we'd had a first or a second. I typically don't have dates standing over bodies." The Phantom said with a slightly amused smile.
"No, you just kiss people over them."
"If I feel it's to my advantage to do so, yes."
"I'm pretty sure kissing me is always an advantage. If you want to go somewhere a little more private, we can test all the advantages."
"Feel free to test them with your hand. I have a job tonight. Besides, I thought the third date was the standard for sleeping with your partner?" The Phantom said, finishing his shake and getting to his feet.
"If I find you again will you at least tell me your name?" Aomine asked, rushing to stand as well.
"Names are standard in job applications. If you find me again, we'll be working together." The blue eyed man waved at him before exiting. Aomine followed him outside, but could find no trace of the Phantom after he exited the restaurant.
It was two months before Aomine found the Phantom again, and frankly both were starting to get disappointed, thinking it might just not happen.
That is, until the Phantom walked into the appartment of his latest target. It took him a moment to locate the body, but there was blood everywhere. It splattered the walls and pooled on the floor in several spots. He finally saw the chopped up body crammed under the bed.
The Phantom tensed when he felt a gun press against his head, but relaxed when he heard a familiar voice whisper "Found you." in his ear.
"You've made quite a mess, Aomine-kun." The Phantom said, a small smile on his face as he repeated the same words he'd used in their first meeting before turning to face the other.
"What can I say? The guy beat a kid to death. I couldn't just let him off easily." Aomine said with a shrug, pocketing his gun. "So, does this mean that we're working together now?"
"I believe it does, Aomine-kun. And per our agreement: my name is Kuroko Tetsuya." The Phantom, Kuroko Tetsuya apparently, said, reaching out a hand to shake.
Aomine grinned and shook the offered hand with his blood covered one.
"I look forward to working with you. And to our first date. Be sure to actually inform me that it's a date beforehand so that it can count, please. And I still maintain that standing over a body is not a date, so this does not count."
Aomine heaved an over dramatic sigh. "You're so much work, Tetsu." He said, the nick name coming to him easily.
"I like to think that I'm worth it."
"I certainly hope so." Aomine tilted his head when he heard police sirens, indicating it was time to go. Perhaps he had left the guy's vocal cords intact for too long.
He didn't have to worry about getting caught though. After all, the Phantom's specialty was disappearing. Aomine got the feeling this was going to be the start of a great partnership. In more ways than one.