Tag Archives: le café maladroit

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le café maladroit || askkudoushinichi

askkudoushinichi:

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“Probably pointless to ask, yeah,” he answered with a small smile, arms still comfortably tucked behind him, the perfect picture of ease. Though underneath his casual aura he was still very much paying attention to the details. As per usual.

The nickname had caught his attention however. It had been awhile since anyone had used it. It had been awhile since anyone had called him anything at all, actually. As far as ‘Shinichi’, that is.

“Around here it was ‘Heisei Holmes’. The other is yours to keep. I thought everyone had forgotten, though. It’s kind of nice to hear that again,” he added with a chuckle. “As you can imagine, I don’t really get the kind of publicity I used to. No more tabloids for now. But as for food…

"Hmm, today’s special is the cucumber and cream cheese sandwiches but I would actually recommend the French Dip with au jus. It’s a little heavier but you get more for your money and it’s warm.”

“French Dip sounds fine to me,” Hakuba said, considering the particular food only after the fact. Protein was good, but it did sound heavier, yes, and he often had difficulty eating in situations where he wasn’t at ease. Which included having lunch with his idol. Though, he could always get the rest to go– that wasn’t too awfully awkward, was it? 

And then there was the matter of the titles. “The Heisei Holmes and the Modern Day Sherlock Holmes sit together in a cafe called Poirot, discussing books, tea, and how good we are at analyzing each other.”

Hakuba smirked, then, attempting to force himself to relax. Things weren’t going to go any better if he stayed so tense, after all; it would serve them nothing. “I think our networking is going quite well so far, don’t you?”

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le café maladroit || askkudoushinichi

askkudoushinichi:

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He nestled he hands against the back of his head and thought about it for a long moment. His life was pretty hectic, what with still needing to keep his identity a secret and having the Black Organization still roaming around. It was dangerous enough just showing his face on the street but at a public airport terminal? One time avoiding onlookers was lucky but a second time? He didn’t want to chance it.

“I don’t know, really…” he sighed, a little down-trodden after he had really thought it through. “No time soon, I don’t think. One day.”

Leaning forward again he snatched the menu out from behind the table decor and slid it across the table to Hakuba. The menu itself was something he had memorized long ago from living only a few feet over the restaurant. He would be disappointed in himself if he couldn’t remember something as simple as a daily lunch special.

“Order whatever you like. If you’re looking for tea, it’s on the back side under the coffee list. Earl Grey is number three,” he added. It was something he had picked up from the distinct smell of Hakuba’s jacket. The scent of bergamont oil, almost like anise. That particular citrus scent mixed with the smell of oxidized plant matter could only be one thing: Earl Grey tea.

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Although there was concern and some degree of disappointment in the answers regarding London, Shinichi’s unasked for observations regarding the tea meant a pleasant distraction. Hakuba tilted his head, reaching to take the menu from him with a nod of thanks.

“I would ask how you knew my particular favorite, but I really don’t think that it’s necessary. You are, after all, our modern day Sherlock Holmes, are you not?" 

The title had once belonged to him, in London. He wondered if Shinichi knew this, or would even call attention to the fact. Not that it mattered; he’d long since decided to defer to his brilliant full-blooded Japanese counterpart. Jealousy aside, it was only right and fair. Kudou had bested him in every gauge that he’d been able to set, and Hakuba was not above admitting when he was wrong.

He looked over the menu with a faint smirk. "What do you suppose you’ll order? Do you have any other recommendations?" 

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le café maladroit || askkudoushinichi

askkudoushinichi:

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“The museum was nice…” he answered, trying to be nonchalant about it. He was supposed to be acting cool and collected but how could he not gush about how much fun he had in London? “It was almost exactly like they described it in the books. The fireplace, the furniture, Holmes’ work desk and all his notes… they put a lot of work into the details. It’s pretty astounding.”

He followed after him with a bit of a bounce in his step, waving at the waitress in greeting before taking a seat where he could see the door quite clearly.

“I wish I could have stayed longer actually. I barely got to see anything because there was a case at Wimbledon. I was too busy trying to stop a serial bomber to even think about sight seeing,” he ended bitterly, recalling the incident that had cut down his precious vacation time.

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It was cute, Hakuba was quick to admit to himself, how the other detective had finally shown a little bit of liveliness. The little spark made it easy for him to be more relaxed and open with him. Finally, they were getting somewhere. 

He took a seat across from Shinichi and grinned. “I’m very glad that you got to see it, though, at any rate. Every piece of that museum is a fanatic’s dream come true. Even the inaccuracies are rife with literary quandaries to ponder over.”

The half-brit sighed, contented. 

“Though, it’s rather unfortunate that you didn’t get to do much else. I suppose when you’ve only so many days for holiday, everything becomes time-sensitive. When do you think you’ll return?"