Disclaimer::::
I do not own Harry Potter or Majin Tantei Nougami Neuro characters. Only my OC Character (s).
I don't make any profit from any of my stories on this website.
Rated M for future sexual content and language
"Characters Speaking"
Characters Thinking
/Author Comments/
~~~Chapter Twelve~~~
~~~Previous~~~
Iriyama has her head lowered. A smirk appears on her face before she begins to laugh. "Kaoruko, you were like my duplicate. An actress who was trained by me. Someone like you who's so talented...How could you get your main character role stolen by some idol actress?"
Kaoruko backs away from Iriyama. "Iriyama, you..."
Iriyama undoes a button off her coat before throwing it behind her. She is wearing a purple suit with a green ribbon around her waist. She isn't even wearing her glasses, and her hair is undone, flowing freely down her back. "It wasn't easy training you as my duplicate, so now it's going to be meaningless! Wasting such talent! So, I had to do it myself. Spotlights shining, cameras flashing, all focused on me!" She runs past us and jumps on the window ledge.
"Iriyama!" Kaoruko shouts.
"Don't do anything stupid," Sasazuka warns.
Iriyama places her left hand on her chest. "Starting now, I am the main character! I already contacted some staff."
Lights shine on her figure from behind her. "There she is!"
She looks behind her. "Look, they're here."
"Don't move the camera! Don't miss the moment of the arrest!" A man orders.
Iriyama stands on the ledge, holding only one hand onto the window and the other to her side. "Come, fellow staff, film me! I am the murderer! Just like this! Point the cameras at me! More flashing lights! Ahh...I'm surrounded by such light. I'm filled with light. Catch me!" She yells before jumping off the ledge.
She is stopped from falling due to the rope Neuro had after he ate his meal, that is. "It seems she was just barely saved."
Sasazuka and Ishigaki take Iriyama away. As they drive off, Yako, Neuro, and I watch from the studio. Godai joins us. "The murderer was the person who gave us the task."
"Yeah." Yako nods her head, upset.
"Look at that," Neuro states, looking at the screen where Kaoruko is talking to the press.
"Kaoruko." Godai mutters.
"The actress of the tragic female lead," Neuro adds.
"In the end, Iriyama only wanted herself in the centre of attention. Or..." Yako trails off.
"Maybe for that and another reason…maybe…" I mutter before letting out a sigh.
"Whatever it is..." Neuro comments.
There is a flashing light before Yako and I are surrounded by reporters. "Another murderer caught. Is it true?" A woman asks.
"Female high school detective, active again!" A man states.
Godai walks off to the right while Neuro walks off to the left, leaving Yako and me staring at his back.
~~~Present~~~
~~~3rd POV~~~
~~~At the Police Station~~~
Sasazuka opens a door, turns on a light, and heads inside to show many files. He looks around before stopping in front of one of them. Phantom Thief Sai is hiding amongst us, the police. There is also the possibility of other spies.
He takes the file and opens it to show the red boxes. Why did he put the corpse in a box? A red box…His mind flashes back to the scene where Yako's and Yuuki's father was killed, causing his eyes to widen. A room covered with fresh blood…a red box…The first who arrived at the scene of Yako-chan's and Yuuki-chan's otou-san death…was Detective Takeha. His eyes widen further. That means…
"Senpai!" A voice calls. Sasazuka looks up and looks in the other direction. "What is it, Ishigaki?"
Ishigaki holds up a letter. "Senpai, this is…"
Sasazuka's eyes widen when he sees the seal, an X.
~~~Yuuki's POV~~~
I wear my light blue coat (over my Egyptian blue and black princess dress) and head back to the office. I just popped into the store for more tea and hot chocolate.
When I get inside, Yako reads a letter out loud. "'Dear Detective, Katsuragi Yako-san, her Ane and assistant, this is the last self-portrait I shall send to you. I will prepare a good mystery for the three of you .-Phantom Thief Sai.' Neuro."
"Seems like it's an invitation," Neuro comments with a smirk.
Yako looks back at the letter. "What does ' The Last Self-Portrait' mean?"
"It's a sculpture, I think," I add.
Neuro opens his eyes. "Akane."
Akane types away on the computer. We look at the screen. Yako leans forward to read. "' The Last Self-Portrait.' The crafter of this piece is Eishiya Touko. I'm not really sure about the details, but I've heard of the name before."
"Is he famous?" Neuro questions.
"Yeah. It says on here that he was a highly appreciated craftsman 20 years ago. But the quality of his work dropped during the last years of his life. 'The Last Self-Portrait', his last work, seems unfinished." Yako comments.
"The craftsman died?" Neuro queries.
"It seems like it. A year ago, in his workroom late at night, he got squashed to death by his sculptures." I add.
"Squashed to death by his own sculptures...It certainly does feel like a mystery. Sai's invitation...I suppose we should accept it." Neuro states with a small smirk on his face.
"Phantom Thief Sai..." Yako trails off.
~~~Later that Night at Eishiya's Home~~~
Yako hides behind a pole, Neuro and I behind her. "This is the place. Look over there. There are so many policemen!"
"They probably received Phantom Thief Sai's crime invitation," Neuro states.
"If Sasazuka-san is here, we can probably go inside, but...seems like it's impossible." Yako turns to look at Neuro. Neuro is pointing to the ground. "What?! You want me to be your stepping stone? You're a demon, right? Can't you just jump over by yourself?"
"I need to use your back." Neuro steps on Yako's back simultaneously; he wraps his arm around my waist. He jumps over the wall, taking me with him. "Yako, get in here quickly."
"Y-Yes...I got it." Yako slowly climbs up. Her jumper gets caught, and she falls off the wall with a yell and a thud. This causes the Doberman to bark and growl at us loudly. Yako lets out another yell. "N...Neuro."
The dog lunges at us, but Neuro opens his eyes, which are glowing green. "Sit." The dog lets out a whine and follows Neuro's command.
"Who are you?" An older female voice demands. "How dare you trespass in here! I'm going to call the police."
'Please wait a moment. Are you Eishiya Touko's wife? We also received the crime invitation from Phantom Thief Sai." Neuro takes out the letter, causing her to let out a soft gasp. "So, the famous detective, Katsuragi Yako-sensei, came here to catch Sai. That's why we're here."
"Katsuragi Yako, the high school female detective?" One of the males states.
"Nee-san, she can't be a fake! I've seen her on television before." The other adds.
The older female (Myou) steps forward (she has brown, wavy hair and black eyes. She is wearing a purple cardigan, top, and skirt). "So that's the case. Pardon me for being so rude." She apologises before leading us inside.
"Back on the subject, your husband passed away exactly one year ago, right? Is everyone gathered here for a memorial?" Neuro queries.
"No, we've been living here all along." The male with brown hair (wearing a green hoody and trousers) comments. He is Maguri Rijin.
"These are my brothers." Touko's wife adds.
The brother to her right has black hair, grey fringe, and black eyes. He wears a green jumper, a light green top, grey trousers, and brown shoes. He is Maguri Kazushige. "It's been a year already; everything was quite messed up when he died."
The last one has black hair and eyes. He is wearing a red shirt, a white top underneath, beige trousers, and black shoes. He is Maguri Yasuji. "Yea, he got squashed by his own sculptures."
"It was an ugly sight," Rijin adds.
"He was originally scary looking, but that made him even scarier," Yasuji states.
Rijin lets out a laugh. "When Taiji-Nii-chan looked in the coffin on the burial day, he got so scared he pissed in his pants."
"Don't say it out loud..." He complains, causing the brothers to laugh.
"Um...Can I ask a question? It's only been a year since a family member passed away; how can you talk and laugh like this?" Yako questions
"Do you think we should act sadder? We are really sad..." Kazushige comments.
"Yeah..." Rijin agrees.
"We're still in debt to the great craftsman, Eishiya Touko. We're really grateful to that old chap." Kazushige says, sounding fake.
"Well, it's all give and take."
"Give and take?" Neuro repeats.
"My husband was not interested in selling his works, so he let my Ani take on the role of the manager." The wife comments.
Rijin is holding out his right arm. "I can eat food without a single worry. Taiji-Nii-chan doesn't need to worry about a job. It's all thanks to that old chap."
Yasuji taps Rijin's shoulder. "You bastard, there's no need to say it like that."
"It hurts, you..." Rijin curses.
The pair starts to play fight. I watch Yako's face to see that she doesn't get this family and how they act. After they stop fighting, we go inside the mansion. Yako is looking around in amazement. "Wow...What an amazing mansion!"
"Are you all the only ones living here?" Neuro queries.
"I also have a daughter." Myou points in front of her. "The room on the second floor is the workroom where my husband died." She takes us upstairs to the room where we enter. "The balance of some sculptures isn't very good, so please be careful."
"Your husband was killed by sculptures that fell?" Neuro questions.
"Yeah..." She trails off.
Neuro looks around. "So ' The Last Self-Portrait' is here?"
"That is ' The Last Self-Portrait.'" Myou looks in front of her.
Two upper bodies are holding each other, but the head and neck of the female body are being sucked into the male one creating a large, round head.
A ringing noise goes off. Myou takes out a black pager. "A guest is here; please excuse me. The three of you, please take your time."
Yako bows at her as she walks away. "Thank you." Yako straightens back up. "I don't think Eishiya Touko-san passed away due to an accident."
"Why?" Neuro challenges.
"Because the craftsman should be well aware of the sculpture's balance, right? It's just odd that he would be squashed by his own sculpture." Yako points out.
"The family is acting suspiciously, too," I add softly, aware of the audience.
Neuro bends down. "You're progressively getting better." He praises. "There's something else I discovered. Sensei, I'll be leaving the investigation of this room to you." Neuro walks away, taking me with him.
"What do you mean by 'sensei...?'"
Neuro ignores Yako and carries on walking.
~~~Yako's POV~~~
I look behind me and let out a small gasp when I see a person lying on the couch. The person notices me and gets up. "Um…"
She starts to walk towards the door. I hold out my arm. "Please wait a moment."
She stops and turns to look at me. "What is it? Who are you? Where have I seen you before?"
"Um, I'm a detective. My name is Katsuragi Yako."
"Detective?" She queries.
"Are you the mistress of this household?" I ask, leaning forward slightly.
"There's no mistress here." She denies.
"What should I call you then?" I query.
"Call me Yuka." She offers.
"Yuka-san, what kind of person was your otou-san? Can you tell me about him?" I question.
She narrows her eyes. "What kind of person?"
"Your otou-san was a famous craftsman; shouldn't you feel proud?" I ask, confused.
"Proud? There's nothing to be proud of." Yuka-san turns her head away. "Sometimes, I would take a look into his room, but just looking at him made me sick to my stomach. That's all there is to it." She turns away and leaves the room.
I held out my hand, but it was too late as she had already left, so I went to find Yuuki-nee and Neuro.
~~~Yuuki's POV~~~
We stop at a window where we see Myou in the arms of a man wearing a suit. Yako catches up to us. "Neuro, Yuuki-nee."
"Don't make a sound." Neuro orders, not taking his gaze away from outside the window.
"Yako, look outside," I order softly.
Yako looks out the window. "Who is that?"
"It seems like she was meeting her new lover," Neuro states before looking down at Yako. "There are a lot of problems in this household."
I narrow my eyes. "It's a bit early for that, don't you think?"
"The three of you, we're busy here," Kazushige says from the top of the hallway. "The role of security was passed on to the police. If you have finished sightseeing, please leave."
"I see." Neuro acknowledges.
We leave the house silently until we are away from the front gate. Yako is the first to break the silence, sounding surprised. "It's not at all like you to let someone push you around like that."
Neuro scoffs slightly. "Someone else will be dying soon. That family is composed merely of parasites. One year after his death, the balance of power is collapsing. There might be corpses. It still wouldn't be too late to solve the mystery then."
"It will be too late!" Yako disagrees.
Neuro stops and looks down at her. "It seems like there's something bothering you."
Yako looks away and gazes in front of her. "Well...' The Last Self-Portrait' is actually completed. It feels like it's trying to tell us something."
"Yeah, a certain feeling for a certain person," I mutter softly.
A smirk slowly appears on his face.
~~~3rd POV~~~
A door is opened in the dark, and a figure walks inside. This figure stops in the centre of the room, a light shining down on them. This figure turns out to be Myou. "What did you want to talk about?" A sound is heard. "I know you're here; come out now."
She walks forward and looks at one of the statues before turning away. The statue begins to tip forward, and she begins to notice, but it is too late. It hits the back of her head, and she falls to the ground, the statue on top of her.
Sasazuka appears on the scene. He gazes up at the house. The dog barks at him, causing him to look down. He ignores the dog as he walks toward the house, even as the dog continues barking. The dog soon lets out a whine and sits.
"It's me; I just arrived at the scene. If Sai appears, I'll restrain him, then contact you." Sasazuka says into the phone.
The scene changes to show a driving car, a voice coming from inside. "You're pretty self-confident. But once we receive your signal, the troops who are positioned there will storm in immediately. So, there's no need for you to do anything."
The scene changes back to Sasazuka, who hangs up his phone. A fish jumps from the pond, causing him to look. The fish jumps back inside the pond to show Sai in the water at the bottom. Now then, I suppose it's about time you showed me. The mysterious moment of this crime and the evidence that he holds. By posing as a policeman, you can come to understand many things. The criminals who have had their mystery devoured by you would scream it was you.
Sai opens his eyes. Although no one else would believe that I would.
Sai's eyes widen as a figure appears near the pond. A smirk appears on his face as his eyes narrow. Sai pops out of the water. "Trade with me."
Not long later, there is a scream. Myou's body has been discovered. The family is brought into the same room and questioned by Sasazuka and Ishigaki. "The one who discovered the body was Yuka-san. Before that, who was the last one to see her?"
"Everyone was in their own room, so no one would have seen her." Rijin denied.
"Me neither." Yasuji also denies it.
Sasazuka turns away. "I see."
~~~Yuuki's POV~~~
~~~Next Day at the Eishiya Home~~~
We hear that Myou, Eishiya Touko's wife, is dead, crushed by a sculpture. We head towards the room where Sasazuka is questioning the family.
"We've seen her meeting with an unknown man," Neuro comments as we enter the room.
Sasazuka turns to look at us. "It's you guys."
"Hello!" Neuro greets.
"Aren't you the detectives from yesterday?" Kazushige exclaims, surprised.
"I can vouch for their credentials," Sasazuka states, causing Yako to sigh with relief and a smile.
"After her husband's memorial, my sister planned to marry again. That guy is probably her lover." Kazushige admits.
"Oh, I see." Neuro acknowledges.
"It's useless for her to find a guy; she's an old woman." Kazushige insults Myou.
"But I never would've imagined the same accident to happen again," Yasuji states.
"Accident? This is a homicide. That's what Sensei says." Neuro comments as he grabs Yako's head, moving her inside the room.
"Homicide? Do you mean the murderer is her lover?" Rijin queries.
"No." Neuro denies.
"Th-That means Sai is." Yasuji stutters.
"Sensei said, someone in here is the murderer. But it's hard to confirm the real murderer in such broad daylight." Neuro puts his hand on Yako's head and the other around my waist. "Please meet up exactly at midnight in the room where they were killed. We will solve the mystery there. Okay, let's go, sensei, Yuuki."
"Wait! Neuro!" She catches up. "What's happening? Do you already know who the murderer is?"
Neuro comes to a stop. "I guess so. But I'm not sure. If it isn't an accident, then the suspect must have told the victim to go to the room. That means there was something that made her go. You have to investigate that."
"Me?" Yako queries.
We walk out, leaving Yako at the door to start her questioning.
~~~Yako's POV~~~
I turn back to the family. "Umm…Can I ask a few questions?"
Kazushige-san leans forward. "Our family member passed away…Would you please step outside for a bit?"
I couldn't help but look at them in disbelief. Yasuji-san notices. "What is that?! Your unsatisfied expression."
"The attitude has totally changed compared to the incident with Touko-san." I point out.
Yuka-san looks up. "Of course, we don't have a blood relationship with that old fart."
"But you're his musume-san." I state, confused.
Yuka-san looks away. "That's just on the surface. But I've heard that I'm my Kaa-san and someone else's child. That's why I don't feel anything for that old fart."
Kazushige-san lets out a scoff and holds out his hands. "I'm not surprised; he didn't have any interest in us either." He entwines his fingers together.
"Thanks to that, I don't feel bad for him. He only knew how to craft his work." Rijin states.
Yasuji-san places a hand on the side of his head. "But those works sell so badly, it's a pain to even think about it."
"Yeah…" Rijin agrees.
Parasites…
~~~Yuuki's POV~~~
We head back to the crime scene. I block out the voices as my eyes flash green. Her essence is still lingering.
I snap out of it when Neuro leaves the room. We walk down the hallway to see Yako close the door behind her, not looking happy. "So, how did it go, Yako? Did you discover anything?"
She shakes her head. "There was absolutely no trace of evidence."
"They are not likely to say anything with Yako in the room." I point out.
"It seems like the Roach-Brain failed my expectations." Neuro insults.
"Roach...New name..." Yako trails off in disbelief.
Neuro throws something in the air. "777 Tools of the Demon World, Evil Butterfly."
"What is that?" Yako queries.
Neuro holds it out. "A microphone from the demon world. If you put this transmitter on your ear, you can hear what's being said in that room. But the annoying thing is, it will sneeze depending on how it feels."
"It doesn't matter," Yako states, putting it in her ear.
Neuro holds up another microphone. It sneezes, and a thin spike appears. "Yeah, it doesn't really matter."
"That's not good," Yako exclaims, panicking.
Neuro slams his hand on either side of her head, squishing her cheeks. Yako has tears running down her face and a look of defeat. "Don't miss anything."
~~~3rd POV~~~
"Really, that detective is so annoying." Rijin curses as he does pushups.
"Never mind, it's best that we do what they say." Kazushige comments.
"Anyways, Nii-san, is it true?" Yasuji asks.
Kazushige looks at him. "What is?"
"The old guy's hidden fortune." Yasuji comments.
Kazushige looks away. "He was just interested in creativity; he has nothing for money. But he sold some of his pieces for a great deal of money."
"Yeah…He must've hidden the money somewhere." Rijin agrees.
Yasuji bites his fingernails before removing them from his mouth. "Think about it: if Nee-san dies, everyone's share of the money will increase."
Kazushige stands up. "You dumbass, how can you call yourself our blood relative? We've been in her care for so long! Don't speak without thinking first."
~~~Yuuki's POV~~~
"Hidden fortune..." Yako mutters.
"Always about money, isn't it?" I comment with a roll of my eyes.
Neuro lowers his microphone. "I see now. All the pieces are falling together." Neuro opens his glowing eyes. "This mystery is on the tip of my tongue. Take a rest before midnight."
Neuro walks off, and I follow after him. "Neuro, Yuuki-nee," Yako calls out but doesn't follow after us. I watch as Neuro sets up all the preparations that are needed. As it got dark, I followed Neuro to the pond, where Sasazuka stood.
"Detective Sasazuka. Sensei has finished her preparations. Also, I have something to request."
The three of us stay hidden until a person sneaks into the workroom. Neuro bangs on the window, gaining the person's attention. "Who is it?"
Neuro opens the window and throws Yako inside. She lands on her knees. "Ouch..." She stands up as I climb inside via the window. Neuro eyes glow green. "Now, Yako."
"The culprit is...You!" She points at Kazushige.
"What the hell are you talking about?" Kazushige demands.
Neuro jumps into the room before waving out the window. "Detective-san, it's all set!"
The lights are turned on, and everyone else is called into the workroom. "What's the matter, Aniki?" Rijin queries.
Kazushige points at Yako. "This detective suddenly said that I'm the culprit. Explain yourselves."
"The evidence we have against you speaks of an unfortunate accident. And by creating this accident, it was your intention to...kill them. According to Sensei's thoughts, you're planning to destroy the evidence." Neuro comments.
"Is that true?' Rijin asks, surprised.
"What are you saying? There's no evidence. Be careful of what you say! I can't stand it!" He shouts.
This presence...feels familiar...really familiar. It's coming from the dog, yet it is not the dog itself. Why do I have a bad feeling about what's about to happen?
~~~3rd POV~~~
A hidden laugh is heard. Come on, solve the mystery, then eat it! That moment is your greatest weakness. No creature is aware of its surroundings while feasting. You also have a time when you're caught up…
A red shadow appears next to the dog. At that moment, I will give you the final blow. The same laugh is heard.
/Thank you for reading this chapter. Please leave a review. Your opinions are appreciated.\