Tag Archives: bloody moriarty

by

Bloody Moriarty

thelotusflowerfiles:

The only place Shinichi could think was Periot and that embarrassed him. Here he was supposed to know Beika, did know Beika, and the only place he could think of was a tiny cafe some odd blocks away from his home. He shook his head and unscrewed the cap off a water bottle to take a long gulp of water. His work out had just ended and he was just waiting, trying to kill some time between the actives cases he was working on and the series of colds that Meguire-keibu had given him.

‘Something to keep you from hunting the streets.’  He grimaced. He did not hunt Beika’s streets NOR prowl as Shiratori-keibu put it. It wasn’t his fault that he stummbled, literally sometimes, across murders or in the scary sense fell right into his lap. That was a interesting night to say the least.

Shinichi sighed and pulled the thin shirt over his head to mop the sweet off his face. He still hadn’t replied to Hakuba mostly because he was still debating on taking the fellow detective to Periot or scrambling in the last minute to find a suitable replacement. A cafe in Japan? After living in Europe? Fat chance he was going to be able to find something that good.

SO Periot it was. At least it was a comfortable spot for him.

Shinichi sat in front his laptop again after his shower and reread the email. The message brought up more questions than answers for him. Particularly why his meeting spots would no long exist. He had read, after some digging and a bit of illegal hacking, and heard the rumors about his running with a criminal named Spider. It didn’t go well for either of them. The coroner’s report was pretty clean and straight forward in their findings.

He leaned back in the chair, the tips of his fingers pressed together as his mind raced with the possibilities as to why it had happened. What trigger that reaction from his fellow detective. Not that he didn’t think it wasn’t necessary but ….

He shook his head. Hakuba was his colleague and was asking for his help. What ever happened in his past need to stay there untouched till the other brought it to the surface. Sitting up in his seat again he got to work on his short simple reply.

Hakuba,

I know of a cafe that is pretty close to my home and is something of a neutral spot for me. Periot cafe. This weekend sounds perfect if a case doesn’t crop up during that time. I’ll be looking forward to our up coming meeting.

Kudo.

He reread the message, was satisfied with it and hit send then looked at the time: One AM. He let his head fall and hit the table.

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Hakuba waited until the morning of his departure before responding, seated in the uncomfortable wooden chair on the covered patio of the Wickham-Hakuba estate.

His tea cooled in the warm morning air, spoon set aside while he tapped out his reply on his phone. Marion watched him from across the table, sun hat shading her face in a solid line while the rest of the setting was dappled with sunlight from the overhanging latticework and ivy. 

Kudou-san,

Excellent. I will give you a call on Saturday morning to confirm plans. Shall we tentatively plan for 15:00:00?

The game had changed. Last names only from Shinichi meant that Hakuba would switch to last and honorific, as opposed to the full names of their previous emails. Did this mean that Kudou thought of him as an equal already, or at least a colleague? Incredible, were that the case…

“Are you sure that you’re able to travel? There’s still time to cancel your flight.” Marion’s voice broke the train of thought, careful to keep her lips in a thin line, not wishing to give away her feelings on the matter, though Hakuba already knew quite well how it was. They played the game of pokerface often, but knew each other far too well to be fooled. 

He didn’t even bother to look up at her, reaching for the delicately rose-covered cup to take a sip. Still too hot. He set it down again. “I expect I’ll be fine, Mum.”

“Yes, of course you’d say that, but your back…”

Hakuba gave a patient sigh and ignored her in favor of rewriting the line he’d just written, easing into a statement that would be a little less formal. 

Let’s tentatively plan for 3 o’clock PM.

Better. It was a little more friendly while still accommodating. But what else to include? How to end it?

“Do you think Miss Twiggy will take to Ekoda well?”

Hakuba finally looked up at that, blinking. “Oh, I think Twig will do splendidly. She’s a sturdy thing.”

So sturdy, in fact, that he wasn’t entirely certain where she was. He glanced over the vast grounds of the estate, squinting to see if he could spot her. Probably herding the ducks again. Like all good corgis, she liked to keep busy. He could relate.

She smiled. “You could always leave her here.”

“No, Mum. Twig stays with me.” He set his phone down to take another sip of tea, which had finally cooled enough to let the flavor of honey through the brew. “We’ll be fine.”

They both sighed, both took a sip of tea, then looked at each other again– she pleading, he irritated. 

“Oh, I wish Baaya were going with you. Just promise me that you’ll stay away from the station?" 

Hakuba rolled his eyes at that. "I’m retired, Mum. I’ve no reason to go to the station except to meet Dad for… whatever I would need to meet him for. I’ll just be taking a holiday.”

It seemed to ease her worries, but only just. “If you say so, but you know how detectives are…” She stopped herself when her son’s expression went cold. “Retired or not, you’re still just as thirsty as a hound, you know! I know you, Saguru James. The moment a case comes up that piques your interest, you’ll be off running regardless of your capacity!”

If it weren’t for the medications, the comment might have pushed Hakuba in all of the wrong direction. As it was, he took another sip of tea, then calmly set it down, ignoring the tremor in his hands. “I’ll stay away from the station, and I’ll come back in one piece.”

Marion let herself relax at that, satisfied. “Good. See that you do, my dear. I’m going to fret from the moment we see you off at the airport until you’re back again.”

“Yes, yes, I know.” Hakuba picked up his phone again to finish the email, hitting send without a second thought. It wouldn’t do to linger, since he was well aware that he was inviting trouble and ignoring his mother’s wishes, right there at the table.

Thank you for your quick response. 

I look forward to seeing you and discussing the aforementioned topic. I’d love to hear of some of your cases, as well.

Sincerely,
– Hakuba S. J.

by

Bloody Moriarty

thelotusflowerfiles:

The letter came as a pleasant surprise for him. He reread the letter and slipped it back into the envelope. He reached for his coffee and watched the morning start. It had been such along time since he had heard from the other detective. His hand writing had change slightly. The laptop by his side was already open with a blank email opened waiting for him to respond.

He stared at the screen and the blinking icon for a moment before hesitating his hands over the key board.

Hakuba S.J.,

I understand.

Tell me  when and where you want to meet. I have admit I am curious to hear about your Moriarty, Congrats on his defeat. 

Kudo Shinichi

He paused reread the email then hit send. Now there was nothing to do but wait. He remembered Hakuba Saguru from his days as Conan but that was seven years ago. He stood and walked towards the window. The soft light of the morning sun played with the trees and flowers in the front yard. He, for a moment, felt peace.

To say that Hakuba was surprised to receive a response from Kudou – and so quickly – was an understatement. It was via email, not hand-written, which was a shame but within the allowable protocol as had been specified in his original correspondence. He wondered if it held any further meaning than that, but… no, Kudou Shinichi was practical. Honest. It was speed and convenience that had guided his hand, not some silly veiled meaning. That was for him to do.

The once famous detective reread the email and stifled a yawn. It would be over-eager to respond right away, but then if he did, and caught Kudou still at his console, perhaps they could begin an open dialog and… 

A whine interrupted his thoughts, and Hakuba glanced down at the dog curled at his feet, tail sleepily thumping against the ground. He looked at the time and frowned. So late… so late, and if he got started now…

With a heavy sigh, Hakuba very slowly, very carefully picked himself up from his chair, leaning against the desk to close his own laptop before shuffling with a heavy limp and grimace to his bed. He would reply later, when it was closer. 

…seventy-one hours later. 

Kudou Shinichi-

I will be arriving on Thursday at 12:43:00 at Tokyo International. Would you be available this weekend for tea? Any location is agreeable with me, though I must confess my fears that any proposed meeting spot on my end may no longer exist in this world. If you have any suggestions, I would be more than glad to hear them, and as always, my father’s estate is open to you. 

Thank you for your quick response.

Sincerely,

Hakuba S. J.

The email from Kudou had been the only silver lining in the sea of dismal despair on which Hakuba found himself lost in for the past… well, as long as he could really remember in recent history. Impressive how such a simple thing could be so significant. 

by

Bloody Moriarty

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When Hakuba looked at the pair of plane tickets in his hands, he felt a certain sense of dread. They were meant to be a gift, a fresh start, and something to get his mind off of the recent verdict of his suspension. But all that they did was drive his failure home. While he’d completed his nine year-long quest, he’d destroyed everything else that he’d built in the process. The fact that his father was extending an offer of help was more than enough evidence of that.

It’d been almost seven years since he’d left Japan for what he’d hoped would be a permanent change. Once he’d graduated from Ekoda High School, it was straight to Oxford with only one or two minor distractions by way of kidnapping and torture, graduated with a four year degree in criminal science with a minor in english (emphasis in journalism), applied for and granted full British citizenship, and been welcomed into Scotland Yard with open, greedy arms. Nearly everything had gone according to plan, just as had been designated oh so many years ago… with a few niggling changes in the details.

…something about a the famous international Hakuba Saguru being forced into early retirement at twenty-four years old, hospitalized for nearly a year due to a broken back. The papers failed to mention the circumstances of the incident, of course, but it was just as well given that his heroism came with the sordid details of deliberate disobedience, drug addiction, and (court ruled ‘justifiable’) homicide. 

Still, the fact of the matter was that Hakuba was in desperate need for a change in scene, and as much as he would have loved to run to Paris or Rio, neither could offer the familial support that he needed. Not that his father, the still-presiding Superintendent General, really could, but the wealth of onsens and homeopathic remedies available seemed promising.

Depressing, but promising. 

But… there was one small glimmer of hope. And that was in the form of his once idol and colleague, Kudou Shinichi. They’d never had the chance to really connect while he was in Japan before, mostly due to the other’s sudden disappearance, but if he were returning, perhaps… 

Well, it was worth a shot, anyway. It wasn’t as if Hakuba expected this letter to result in anything different. Previous correspondence had been ignored, and despite his best efforts to investigate Kudou’s whereabouts, he had never found any sort of useful resolution. No closure. 

He drafted the letter in four attempts and posted it via Royal Mail, international, overnight. Just in case. Enclosed was nothing but a single sheet of paper with scribbled blue characters– the shaky handwriting of a once steady hand.

Dearest 
My fi 
Greetin

Kudou Shinichi,

I hope that this letter finds you well. I know that it has been quite some time since we last spoke, but Ihope that thi I do hope that this will reach you. It seems that I will be returning to Japan to visit for six months an indep indeterm undetermined unspecified period of time, but if agreeable, would very much appreciate the chance to meet with you.

There are many things that I would like to discuss with you, not the least of which being the death defeat of my so-called Moriarty and your opin ethical opinion of such.

Please respond if willing – I  via post, email, or phone at the information listed below.

Sincerely yours,

Hakuba S. J.

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It would have to do.

Japan, for Hakuba, teemed with loose ends. It was possible, however, that there was no better time than the present to fix that.