Work Text:
Goro hates working for Masayoshi Shido. But he’s playing a long game of deception here, and he knows it’s going to pay off in the end.
When he initially approached the man to work for him, he did not have much to offer except for his skills with law enforcement. So that’s how he ended up being on Shido’s security team. The idea of having to actually protect this son of a bitch made his skin crawl, but luckily most of his job involved protecting his office instead, as well as the confidential information within.
Tonight he’s posted up outside of Shido’s office building. There’s increased security due to what looked like an attempted break-in the week before. Despite this, it’s looking for a while there like it will be one more uneventful night standing guard, until he suddenly hears a faint noise from around the corner of the building.
It’s probably nothing, but out of curiosity he radios the guard posted up at the door where he heard the noise. “Is everything alright over there?”
There’s no response. He tries again, and the radio only returns static.
That definitely piques his interest. The idea of something happening isn’t so much worrying to him as it is vaguely exciting.
When he creeps over and peeks around the corner of the building where the guard was stationed, he sees a figure lying on the ground, and the door behind him opened. Closer investigation confirms that the figure on the ground is the guard, unconscious but not seriously injured.
If someone got in the building, the alarm inside should have tripped. Since there’s only silence from inside, it appears this intruder knows what they’re doing.
Goro attempts to radio to other guards for back-up, but again only receives static in response. Looks like the communication was interrupted, then.
Instead of trying to find more back-up, he decides to make his way in alone, his hand on the gun in his holster. As he makes his way through the darkened building, he finds a few more unconscious guards scattered on the ground. This person appears to know the layout of the building and the security, and it appears based on their trajectory, they’re going for Shido’s private office.
Suddenly, a crackling sound pierces the silence, and Goro hears a muffled voice down the hallway. It sounds like someone talking over a radio, but not that of the guards. It’s followed closely by a yell and the sounds of a fight.
He rushes in, turning the corner at the end of the hallway, just as the guard outside of Shido’s office falls to the ground. Standing over him is the figure of a man cloaked in black. As soon as Goro lays eyes on him, he dashes away, into the shadows.
“Stop!” Goro moves forward, hand pulling his gun out of its holster. He only gets a few steps before suddenly someone is grabbing him from behind.
He thrashes, elbowing the person grabbing him. He hears a gasp and their grip loosens slightly, before whirling them both around, pressing Goro against the wall. A hand pins Goro’s to the wall, tightening on his wrist enough that he’s forced to drop the gun. They struggle against each other for a few more moments before Goro stills, panting, as he realizes he’s fully pinned for the time being.
The man pressing against him looks to be about his own age, with a handsome face partially covered by a white mask. Goro glares at him. “Well?” he snaps, irritated at being bested. “What are you going to do now?”
It doesn’t seem as though the man was really paying attention to him. He only stares for a few moments, dumbly. Then he says “Oh,” quietly, in a surprised tone.
The crackling sound signals a radio coming to life again. Goro realizes it’s coming from the man’s earpiece. They’re close enough that he can hear the words coming from it now.
“Oh god, I know that tone.” It sounds like the voice of a young girl. “Joker, you can’t be doing this right now! I don’t care how cute this one is, just knock him out and move on!”
Goro’s eyebrows shoot up, shocked. Is he really hearing this? It’s enough to make him momentarily forget how annoyed he is, and he only stares, at a loss, as the man pinning him to the wall--Joker, apparently--actually starts to blush, of all things.
“I don’t want to hurt you,” Joker says, addressing him and ignoring the girl in his earpiece, who groans exasperatedly. “Any chance you’ll just let me get into that office?”
In any other circumstance, Goro would laugh outright at the ridiculousness of the request, which even Joker seems to know sounds futile. But it’s not like there’s any love lost between him and his current employer.
“What are you trying to do?” he asks, instead.
“Well, I guess I can tell you.” Joker sighs. “I’m just trying to get some information on Shido. Some unsavory things. You happen to know anything like that?”
There’s no way he can admit to that without incriminating himself. “You want to blackmail him?”
Joker flashes him a grin. “Yeah, basically.”
“Joker, we seriously don’t have time for this!” the voice yells over the earpiece. “Start using your head instead of your--”
Joker covers the earpiece with his hand, muffling the noise. As he does so, he realizes his grip on Goro with that hand. Instead of using the opportunity to attack him, though, Goro stays put.
Joker seems pleasantly surprised by his show of compliance. “I don’t know how much you know about Shido,” he continues. “But he’s not a good person. I’m with a group that likes to expose people like that. The world is full of too many of them, and the cops don’t do enough about it. Don’t you think?”
Goro couldn’t possibly agree more, but that’s not something he’s ever said aloud.
All this time, all he’s wanted is to become close to Shido, his despicable, deadbeat father, and bide his time until he can kill him. He’s known that it would take some time, and that he would hate every second of being in Shido’s employ until he gets his chance. But the immense gratification that follows will bring meaning to the rest of his sorry existence, if only for one moment.
It’s an extremely personal grudge, but one that has led to a general hatred and distrust for the general population, full of corrupt adults.
Knowing that this stranger seems to feel the same way...well, he can’t possibly help it if it makes him just a little bit smitten.
“Far be it from me to stand in your way,” he says, after a moment of deliberation. “I think you’ll find we have similar thoughts on that matter.”
Joker blinks at him, surprised, before another grin appears on his face. “Is that so? Then you’ll really let me go?”
“On one condition.”
“Anything for you, gorgeous.”
The line is followed by a wink, and Goro feels his face heating up. He clears his throat, keeping his composure. “In truth, I have no fondness for Masayoshi Shido,” he says. “If you’re going to destroy him, I want in.”
Joker’s grin grows impossibly wider. “Wow,” he says. “You’re perfect.”
Goro grumbles, shoving him away and straightening himself up, trying to battle the growing heat on his face and the thumping of his heart. He can’t believe he’s actually doing this. Changing his lifelong plan for some dashing, flirtatious thief that he just met.
But Shido has a lot of help staying in power. Maybe it’s time Goro had some help, too--for once in his life, really. He doesn’t think he’ll have any other opportunities to get any.
The voice speaks up again as Joker takes his hand off his earpiece. “Whatever you’re doing, do it fast before more guards show up!”
“Got it.” Joker answers her, then stretches a hand out toward Goro as he addresses him. “I don’t think I caught your name.”
There’s really no reason to withhold it at this point. “Goro Akechi.”
“Goro Akechi,” Joker repeats, and something about the way he says it has Goro’s heart beating faster. “We have a deal. Let’s go.”
Goro looks down at the red-gloved hand being offered to him. And takes it.