A Fortune's Fool

Written By: Lady Lunar Phoenix

Beta:

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It was a thick book all things considered, it was a book that started long before it should have. No children came to play with her, no invitations ever came with her in mind. She spent her days lost in books that were meant for older teens and adults. A child with no parents and only one old man and a butler to look after her. How was she supposed to know how to interact with other kids when she spent all her time around old men? So how could she be blamed for trying to get into a profession years before she should have?

All her year books, all the things that told of her life, told of a boy's life not a girls. From the way she dressed, to the way she acted there was nothing to indicate that he had a granddaughter. He had offered to send her to school in America, his American friends had lauded the girl's intelligence and welcomed the chance to have such a girl there. But Naoto always wanted to stay home, wanted acceptance in Japanese society as a detective.

Even if America or Europe showed far less bias on her for her gender when it came to her desire to be a detective.

"One day you have to bring home the young man who caused you to willingly put this on."

It wasn't far beyond her normal clothes, still boy clothes in fact, but she didn't bind up her breasts, and her coat was gone. A tomboy, she looked like a tomboy, and in doing so it allowed more of her softer traits to be made manifest. She was in transit, stopping at the estate before returning to Inaba. She had said it was easier to just change clothes here, because she had things to do when she got back there.

But he didn't become a detective without learning signs, and even in his own grandchild he could see them. His words earned a hot blush on her cheeks and her stumbling to try to explain. Why she would openly dress this way while not 'saying' she had a boyfriend? She had been nervous and he probably made it worse by insisting on a picture before she left. It was amazing how she could look so innocent in that picture, young love really. He wanted to meet the young man who could make his granddaughter blush with that youthful joy.

His eyes went to that framed picture back down to the book of Naoto's own exploits. The list of men from street thugs to CEO's, Naoto had a rather remarkable career in development. Articles about the 'boy detective' or the as more modern term for her 'Detective Prince'. He knew of the one who had escaped, worried that the man might be the one. But not all the people in the book were still behind bars, good behavior could get you places in a situation where overcrowding was an issue.

He turned the page as he looked from face to face wondering who out of all these tough harden men would go after Naoto. It was the fear of how she could end up that made him wish she didn't want to be a Detective. Why couldn't she settle for marrying one, instead of being one herself? But it was a fool's thought and he knew that, for being a detective is what made her happy. He wanted her to be happy, even if it meant her being in a field that could have the consequences that she now had to face. But that didn't stop him from feeling so very old and tired. The weight of his kimono's fine silks felt like anchors to his shoulders.

The meeting with Police Detective Dojima had gone as expected, reassurance that everything was being done to find his granddaughter. That her clearly disoriented behavior that made her oblivious to her impending kidnapping was not her fault, nor a pre-planned move of the kidnapper. Rather it had been an act brought on by her friends attempting to create a particular atmosphere for some idea.

"Shirogane-sama?" Yakushiji opened the door and slid in quietly while standing at near attention. "Seta, Souji has arrived." With that this butler opened the door allowing a tall, young man to enter the room. He was odd in that his hair was a vivid gray silver color, something that was incredibly rare, unless it was dyed. He had surprisingly gentle eyes as well, at least his face bore a gentle look. But at the moment he was serious, it was in the way he carried himself, it communicated in the way he visually checked everything before putting it on ignore, but the man behind the desk. Yakushiji was not stupid, just letting this person into office though, was strange. "Sir, allow me to introduce you to Seta-san, Naoto-sama's lover."

And with that it fit. So this was the young man who made his granddaughter's face flush with young love. He didn't get up to greet the young man, after all Naoto had no father or mother any longer. It was up to him to look over and review all those who sought his granddaughter's heart and make sure they were of the proper quality. But also, he wanted an explanation as to why his granddaughter was drunk the night before her kidnapping.

Yakushiji had backed out of the room discreetly allowing the pair to have privacy, while neither adults invited the young man to sit down. Not yet at least. The young man had an aura that was almost palpable about him. Souji didn't dress like he was coming before a man who had stood before government officials or any heads of state. His clothes were that of a collage student, though he didn't seem to bother following regulations regarding keeping the shirt tucked or the jacket closed. His dress sense made the elder man wonder what his granddaughter saw in this boy.

"I am to assume you are here regarding my granddaughter." It wasn't a question, Seta had better been here regarding that.

"Then shall I assume that book before you is the one that holds the list of potential kidnappers?" Seta replied his voice cold. This wasn't the way to meet your lover's guardian anyone with a brain knew that. But Souji wasn't exactly happy about prearranged marriage dates set on his girlfriend either.

"Do you even have a clue in your head who you are addressing?" Shirogane-san asked his tone dipping into icy tones. Souji merely approached the desk and began leaning against it in a threatening manner.

"The man who tried to sell 'my' girlfriend off without either of our consents? The man who drove her to agreeing to a stunt that ultimately left her without her wits about her and helped some bastard kidnapper her." Souji replied refusing to back down.

It missed it's mark, but the young man was brave to talk in such a way towards him. Seta didn't care about repercussions or any form of punishment, the elder could see that his granddaughter was all that mattered to this young man. Perhaps there 'was' more to this man, something that Naoto had found herself. He picked up the book and held it out to the young man, watching as Seta eased off his assertive posture to look at the images. "For the record, I did not initiate the sessions, somehow someone took a picture of her from somewhere and began it themselves." He raised his hands as though to ward off questions. "I realize that is inappropriate and I have fended off several would be suitors from her. Out of respect for my granddaughter's feelings, I have repeatedly turned them down. But in this day and age not everyone comes to the guardian, some have apparently gone directly to her."

The young man stood there holding the book in his hands and looking distantly down at it. As though recalling things from the past, which he may very well have been doing. "She told me, she was afraid, back at the club. She wanted me to not lose interest, was afraid that someone would take her away from me."

"Long distance relationships are difficult I know. She would not wish to burden you with such information, that is simply her way of being. But perhaps now I understand what Dojima-san meant when he was talking about her friends." They were trying to help, but they didn't understand the danger of being a detective... No, that wasn't right, no one ever dreamed she would be kidnapped. 'Oh Naoto, you were afraid and I didn't even notice. Just another one of your emotional needs that I obliviously ignored.'

"So what now?" Souji had flipped open the book and was going through the pages. He noticed how each person was listed with status information, apparently the old man had been in the process of getting updated information on the criminals. "How many of them would just kidnap her for a ransom versus how many people would want revenge?"

"It comes down to her gender, a ransom might be possible. However; she has put very powerful men behind bars, as well as dangerous criminals. Her gender may impress them into wanting only a ransom, while at the same time may turn them against her more violently. Right now the profiles only list about an 1/8 of them possessing the capacity to become a serious threat."

"Then I need to get started don't I?" Souji asked looking at the book, a lone book that expressed a young life spent solving crimes. All the while the bitter reality of the situation and hope warred within his heart.

"Entertain an old man's curiosity." The elder spoke thoughtfully as he watched Souji looking over the book. "But what help do you think, that you can offer myself and the police?"

If the bad guy getting away was the vexation of law enforcement, then having his Persona was a vexation for Souji. All that power, and nothing could be used to find Naoto faster. No matter how much Naoto tried to re-enforce her masculine identity, underneath it all was still a girl looking for a place in the world. "When we started dating, there was a compromise that we made. I would accept that she wishes to be a Detective, despite all the dangers that could involve her life in. I would never argue, nor would I try to tell her she had to stop no matter the danger. But in exchange she had to accept that I am just one man, and that the way I think is a part of who I am. So when someone messes with her, it's the same as messing with me. And I am not one to be messed with." he stated his tone hard, with the emotions he tried to suppress, as he flipped to another page.

"You miss her." It wasn't a casual observation, the Elder Shirogane was still curious about this young man. So hearing a passionate answer like that was comforting in it's own way.

"Heh, yeah. I miss her the moment we let go, the moment the train pulls out and I see her disappear into the distance. But right now, I am angry as hell, frustrated and scared to death in all honesty." He closed his eyes letting his head sink into one hand as the memories of a nightmare came back. "I'll be honest with you. I'm scared, something is gnawing at me from the back of my mind telling me that I don't have much time. It eats away at me, and all I can think of is the worst case scenarios. Say what you want, but I love her more then my own life and nothing is making me more angry or scared then the fact that I can't do anything."

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The Gazebo was quiet, there was no one around save a lone blond sitting there in a uniform. Yosuke could only look at her for a moment, he knew who it was after all. Chie was still down in the dumps, and it showed in the way she moved and acted. He sighed and looked down at what he was carrying, he wasn't like Souji, he couldn't cook food as well as their leader. But still, even if it was bought, food was food and so long as he could cheer her up?

"Hey, I brought you something."

He watched as Chie started and looked over at him, curiosity in her eyes before she lowered it to the bag in his hand. Holding it out to her, he settled into back on his heels waiting for a vocal reply of acknowledgment from the cop in training. She looked nice in that uniform, a skirt that reached her knees, though he knew she wore something under it so she could use her legs for a fight. But he missed her green outfit, she looked better in green and gold then these sickly hues.

She took the bag from him and opened it, a sniff alerting that she picked up on the scent of food quickly. "Aha! Is this steak?" She asked as she pulled out the cheap plastic tray with the less then cheap steak resting inside. The package was warm and she quickly set about getting it out and ready to eat. "Thanks Yosuke, what's the occasion?"

"Occasion? Well you've been looking down since Naoto disappeared and well I just..." He drifted off when he noticed she was staring at him with this surprised look on her face. For a moment he didn't catch on to why she had such a surprised and thoughtful look on her face. Then he thought about what he was saying. "What? Oh just eat the thing before it gets cold!"

"Okay, okay! Sheesh I'm eating!" she was just about to tuck herself into the meal before she gave him a quiet 'thank you'.

He sat down watching her eat, enjoying just this time together with a friend when after a bit she broke the silence between them. "I was thinking just now, how things might have gone differently if we didn't come up with that idea." He looked at her, not understanding where she was going with this or even exactly where she was coming from. "We were having a girls night out, and rented a few movies. It wasn't easy, Yukiko likes romance, me with my Kung-Fu and Naoto with her Detective stuff. But we found a couple that were mixes and matches so we settled in with a few bowls of popcorn and got to watching."

It was the first time he heard what happened that gave birth to the idea of the kidnapping ploy. All he had ever been told was that idea itself, not where it was born from. She was reminiscing, probably not even aware that he was still there or listening. But he could see she needed to get this off her chest and he didn't mind listening to her.

"When it got late we talked, which isn't easy to do when it's two quiet people and me. But I got this great idea about helping fan Naoto's romance from watching the detective movie. It was going to be great! Naoto was being pestered by guys lately and it would have been a great way to help her confirm her relationship with Souji. One of the movies even had a kidnapping theme similar to that! Only it was a woman detective from America looking for her kidnapped lover. I thought that sounded like a great idea and suggested it to Naoto." Chie smiled a bit at the memory her eyes lost to the past. "She didn't agree to it at first, she actually called me a few nights later and asked if I thought it was really possible to pull off."

"I see so the whole 'pretend that Naoto's been kidnapped by a would be rival suitor' came about from a late night marathon of action and romance flicks." Yosuke leaned back a smile on his lips at the thought of that. It was amusing and rather endearing in it's own way. Here rested proof that guys alone did stupid things for love!

"Yep, at the height of inane thoughts we were going to tie her up to the headboard of a bed at the top of the Eiffel Tower in France! Fill the place full of Shadows so she could watch as the love of her life fought to save her!" Chie announced with a skewer in her hand raised like a sword of truth, her eyes gleaming from the memory.

"Then Naoto smacked you upside the head, called you an imbecile and you guys moved on right?" Yosuke asked crossing his arms over his chest and staring at Chie in amusement.

"Yeah, but she had been hugging that pillow to her chest the whole time so it needed to be used for something." Chie agreed with a warm smile on her lips. Then the smile faded and the present came back putting a cloud back over her head.

"It was a good idea Chie," he offered reaching out and putting his hand on her back, rubbing it gently in circles. "Just next time let's send Naoto off to a school of seduction and let her learn the fine art of seducing men. Souji would love that more I think."

"Compared to this? Heck yeah." She nodded through her tears trying to smile for him.

"The station must be up in arms though," he tried to move from the pained subject of how it began. "Losing the Detective Princess like this must have them upset."

"They don't know, Dojima-san never told them Naoto's gender, they still think she's a boy." Chie pointed out as she wiped the tears away.

"What?! How can they not know? The school knows, and a few of the cops have got to have kids there!" Yosuke's eyes were wide in surprise. Which had been true, even after that whole stunt to find out who the school goddess was. There was not a single red blooded Japanese boy or girl in Yasogami High who didn't know Naoto's gender.

"I don't think they talk about it, or believe it. I don't really know to be honest. I think the kids don't tell their parents because it's so weird for a girl to dress and act so much like a boy. Oh and I know of one officer who thought their son was just jealous of Naoto and said she was a girl as a way to save face." Chie offered up her tone thoughtful as she looked up before returning to her steak.