Chapter Text
The detective sighed, allowing himself to sink into the cushions of his bed. Another day, another game with the Phantom Thief.
Shuichi huffed, his eyes made their way to a certificate on his wall, the one that officially declared him the "Ultimate Detective". He never felt like he could live up to that title. Sure, he solved a couple of cases before the police did, and uncovered murders alongside his uncle, but he was sure anyone could have done that if they had been at the right place at the right time. He figured it was because of his age that people were impressed, he was only eighteen after all.
Either way, the Phantom Thief had him stumped. He and his gang suddenly appeared a few months back, and Shuichi just so happened to be helping his uncle with a case of a stolen ancient scroll from the Ultimate Anthropologist.
He was unlucky enough to come face to face with the thief during that case, and ever since, they had run into each other over and over again as if they were arch enemies. That was certainly how the press perceived it, the public couldn't get enough of them – to the point they would call them the modern day Sherlock and Moriarty.
But what kind of detective was Shuichi supposed to be if he couldn't figure out the identity of his "nemesis"?
He stood up, walking to his desk. There, he pulled out the file he had on the Phantom Thief, and skimmed through all the information he had on him.
Name unknown. Male in mid to late teens. About 5'1 in height. Hair color believed to be a deep purple shade. Leader of the organization proclaimed as "D.I.C.E".
That was it. That was all he had on him. Other things about him weren't related to his identity - like the fact that he would call Shuichi his "beloved detective", and how he constantly treated his heists like a game. Not to mention the extravagant outfit he wore - white suit with his group's logo, small chains attached to the suit, black cape, black gloves, top hat with what seemed to be a checkered scarf tied around it, and a mask that he always wore to completely hide his face. He dressed as if he were some sort of antagonist in some teenage mystery drama from the 80's.
Shuichi sighed yet again, admiring the picture of the thief that was pinned onto the file.
He would never ever admit it to anyone, not even his best friends, but a part of him did enjoy the games and challenges that the Phantom Thief riddled him with. He was different, so different from the classic cases he'd get. As much as he wanted to uncover his identity and win the game, he didn't completely want it to end.
Ah, but that was crazy talk, wasn't it?
The detective dozed off on his bed, his mind on the mysterious Phantom Thief.
~🌺~
The ringing of his phone woke him up.
Shuichi groaned, looking up at the clock on the wall. It was just about 7 in the morning.
Stretching tiredly, he answered his phone, putting the speaker on so he could change into fresh clothes as he spoke.
"Hello?"
"Saihara.. do you recall the plans of the heist that the D.I.C.E organization are planning to go through with?"
Shuichi yawned quietly, as he buttoned up his shirt. "The mm... the plans to steal that gem from the ah.. what was it, some kind of museum of ancient relics or whatnot?"
"Precisely. One of our men is believed to have eyes on D.I.C.E's vehicle heading towards there now. A car is waiting for you downstairs, please arrive at once. I think we've got him this time."
Shuichi nodded, despite the man on the phone not being able to see him. "Understood.."
He hung up the phone and pulled his coat on, sighing. He doubted this was the day they'd catch him, but perhaps those were his own wishes speaking. Grabbing his hat and putting it on his head, the detective made his way downstairs, and hopped into the vehicle that was sent for him.
On the ride to the museum, Shuichi pondered what kind of game the Phantom Thief had in store today.
Upon arrival, a man in a black suit and bullet proof vest greeted the detective.
"Detective Saihara, please, follow me." He spoke, he led Shuichi to the inside of the museum via a side door, and explained the details of the operation as they walked.
"The police has the place surround. Hidden in the surrounding buildings, parking lots and whatnot. We definitely got 'im this time, they wont see it comin'."
Knowing the Phantom Thief, Shuichi begged to differ. He bet he already knew. He probably has the police surrounded with his own men. Hell, he's probably already in the building.
But Shuichi didn't say that. Instead, he nodded quietly in response.
The man led him to where the gem's display case was. A few other men were there, each of them sporting black vests and guns.
Shuichi walked up to the display, looking at the velvet encased ropes that kept people from getting close to the glass.
"May I?" He asked one of the men. The man looked to another for confirmation, and received a nod. They opened up the path for him to get a better look. Shuichi mumbled a thank you, and walked up to the glass case. His eyes scanned the gem, it was shimmery and shone some kind of rose-gold color. It was almost... too shimmery.
"H-Hold on, something's off about—"
Before he could finish his sentence, a terrifying noise came from outside, it was loud, a few more bangs followed it.
"Shit! Gunshots!" The men in the vests, shouted, running out to the field. Clearly no one had expected the heist to start so early, or to be seemingly.. violent.
After calming himself, Shuichi scrunched his nose slightly, something was off about those shots. They were much too deep, echoed all too much, and Shuichi could have sworn he heard a crackle at the end.
"W-Wait-!! Those aren't gunsh—"
"Neeheeheeh!" The familiar laugh rang.
Shuichi paused, suddenly noticing he was alone in the room. Well, not entirely alone. He turned around, and there he was, extravagant outfit and all.
The Phantom Thief.
"I knew you were so much smarter than them.. That's my beloved detective for ya~" the thief spoke, despite having a mask cover his face, Shuichi knew he was smiling under there.
"You really are built up on lies, aren't you?.." The detective huffed, glancing at the gem in the case.
"You know it!" The thief almost hopped up and down in his place, excitedly. "Let's hear, let's hear it detective! What have you got?"
"..Well- those gunshots,, they weren't gunshots, they were fireworks, weren't they?" Shuichi asked, despite being almost certain.
"Ahh! So smart, exactly what I expected!" He clasped his hands together, laughing to himself. The sounds of the fireworks going off in the background echoed.
"And..." Shuichi added, the thief stopped laughing to listen, wondering what else he had to say.
"That... that isn't the real gem." The detective point at the gem in the case.
"Oh dear... you're getting a little too good at this, don't you think Saihara?" The Phantom Thief tilted his head, Shuichi could still sense the smile on his face.
"You got me!" He held up his hands. Shuichi's eyes widened upon noticing the gem in his left hand, out in the open.
"That's a bit risky, isn't it?" Shuichi questioned him, tilting his head as he kept his eyes fixated on the gem.
"Maybe, but honestly, what are you gonna do about it~?" The thief teased, twirling the gem amongst his slim fingers.
Shuichi stood in place. The Phantom Thief wanted to know what he'd do next. He knew that he was posing a challenge, the gem was right there for Christ's sake. The only reason he held it in front of him was so that he could challenge Shuichi to wrestle it out of his hands himself. Shuichi knew it, and so did the thief.
The real question was what he really was going to do. The most viable answer was to call for back up, Shuichi wasn't especially fast or strong, and he could most definitely get hurt.
The doors to the room they were in were suddenly banged on, Shuichi wondered when the thief even managed to lock them.
"Open up!" A muffled man's voice came from the other side of the door.
"Ah... I guess that's my queue." The thief pouted under his mask. "Too bad, I was hoping you'd be up for it.." He sighed, turning his back on the detective, waving the gem in the air. "See you later my beloved!"
Was this really what Shuichi decided? This... was too boring, too easy.. it wasn't the challenge he wanted.
So he decided to believe, no, he decided to trust that the Phantom Thief would go easy on his so-called beloved detective.
Shuichi made up his mind, and ran towards the shorter male. The thief noticed the sudden change in his position, and laughed.
"Yes! I knew you wouldn't be boring!" His laugh echoed as he ran up the stairs to the museum's roof. Shuichi trailed close behind, the training he did with Kaito and Maki paid off, as he managed to catch up with the rather agile Phantom Thief.
The two reached the roof, anyone else would believe that the thief was cornered, but no, Shuichi knew he always had his ways to escape.
The thief ran with glee, adrenaline coursed through his veins as he gripped on to the gem tightly. He didn't expect to suddenly fall to the ground.
Shuichi managed to grab hold of the thief's cape, causing him to fall over onto the roof's rough pavement. With his luck of course, the detective fell right onto the thief. It was probably the closest they had ever been to each other.
At this point the thief got slightly nervous, he didn't expect Shuichi to make it this far, but that's what made this all the more exciting. He kept the gem tightly encased in his fist, holding it away from the detective.
Shuichi reached for the gem, he was so close, he was right next to him—
He was right next to him.
This was his chance, the thief was preoccupied with keeping the gem out of reach, this meant Shuichi could take off his mask to reveal his identity, to answer Shuichi's number one question, and that's exactly what he intended to do.
In a sudden reflex, Shuichi's hand shot towards the mask—
But he was knocked out unconscious before he could pry it off.
~🌸~
"Wh— What the hell?!" The masked thief shrieked, looking at the now unconscious detective on top of him.
One of his henchmen, another member of D.I.C.E, stood above them both, adjusting his mask.
"What the fuck did I say about violence?!" The Supreme Leader shouted at his comrade, who started to regret his actions.
"I-I know boss but— He was about to remove your mask! What did you expect me to do?!"
The leader growled at him, turning his attention to the detective once again. He set a hand on his cheek, studying the forming bruise, and his now bloody nose.
"No one lays a hand on my beloved detective, understand?" He spat. His comrade only nodded in reply.
Both of their heads turned at the sound of a police officer with a megaphone.
"Members of D.I.C.E! We have the place surrounded. Give yourselves up or we'll be forced to detain you."
The two simply rolled their eyes, bored of the police officer's attempts to threaten them.
"Let's go."
~🌸~
Shuichi's head throbbed intensely as he slowly regained his consciousness. He groaned, lifting up his hand to rub his forehead. "Where the hell..." He muttered, looking around the unfamiliar room he was in. The room was... normal to say the least. It was quite messy though, there were many crumpled up sheets of paper and empty cans of Panta lying around.
"Ah, Saihara! You're awake!" A familiar voice rang. In front of the detective, came forth the Phantom Thief once again, only in a less extravagant outfit. He now wore white clothing with different colored buttons and a checkered scarf. The mask he had earlier still remained on his face. Though for the first time, Shuichi saw the thief's hair clearly, since he wasn't wearing his over-the-top top hat. It was somewhat messy, and shone a deep purple hue.
"Wh...Where am I—?" The detective questioned the Supreme Leader, who walked over to him.
"In D.I.C.E's secret lair! Neeheeheeh~! That's a lie of course, it's not our main lair. Just the closest one we had to that museum."
Shuichi looked at him, dumbfounded at the situation. "Am.. Am I a hostage—?"
The thief could only laugh, setting his arms behind his head. "Now why would I hold my beloved detective hostage? How would you be able to do detective work then? Nah, I just brought you here to care for your wounds. I don't tolerate violence caused by my group!" He huffed, scowling under the mask, he kneeled down in front of the detective, tilting his head. "How are you feeling now?"
"I'm... decent. I guess.." He mumbled in reply, his eyes fixated on the Supreme Leader's locks.
He could only giggle at the curious detective. "Aw, excited to see something new, are you now? Well then, I don't think I should be the only exposed one here!" The thief exclaimed, before pulling off Shuichi's hat.
"H-Hey-! Give it back—" The detective reached for it to get it back, to no avail.
"This stupid hat hides all your delicate features Saihara... you look much better now!" The thief smiled under the mask. He put the detective's hat on top of his own head. "I'll keep this as a souvenir." He giggled. Shuichi didn't seem too amused.
Before he could scold the thief some more, Shuichi groaned as he held his head, where he felt a small bump that hurt when he touched it. The Phantom Thief tilted his head, then looked on the top of his head.
"See? That dumb hat kept me from seeing this injury! You're welcome~!" He hummed. Before Shuichi could answer, the thief ran out of the room, then quickly returned with a cold can of Panta. He kneeled down in front of the detective and gently pressed up the can against the injury.
"Sorry, would have given you an ice pack buttttt, all our first-aid supplies are in our main base!" He giggled slightly. "This'll have to suffice."
Shuichi watched the thief, almost dumbfounded.
"Why— Why are you doing this? Why didn't you just leave me with the police?"
The Supreme Leader laughed a little. "I may be a liar, but I never lie when I say that you're my beloved detective! I'll admit, I have a bit of a soft spot for you Shu.."
The detective huffed, not sure how much he believed him.
"Why bother doing it yourself though? You're right in front of me. I could tear off your mask right here, right now." He threatened, looking up at the hand that was holding the can to his head.
The thief glanced towards the door, ensuring that none of the other D.I.C.E members were there to take the threat seriously and spoil his fun.
Once he confirmed no one was there, he turned back to Shuichi, with a smirk he couldn't see.
"We both know you wouldn't do that."
Shuichi raised an eyebrow. "What makes you so sure?"
The Supreme Leader could only laugh as he leaned his face right next to the detective's.
"Do it then."
Shuichi was taken aback, not expecting the thief to be so on board with the idea. He kept his hand from shaking as he raised it to the mask, setting a hand on it. He couldn't bring himself to take it off.
The thief's smirk could only widen. "See?"
Shuichi sighed, dropping his hand. "..How'd you know?"
"You know, I don't think we're all that different, Saihara. We're both keeping each other going, for the thrill! That's why you couldn't take off my mask, yeah? Because it'd be boring. It'd be predictable. Our games would end and I'd be behind bars, and you'd be bored once again, solving stupid robberies and missing child cases. And let's be honest, you are my beloved detective, and I'm your beloved thief, no matter how much you don't want to admit it."
Shuichi sighed, not knowing how to reply. He had been called out, and denying it to the Phantom Thief's face would be no use.
"Boss." A voice rang from the doorway, another masked man in white stood there, another member of D.I.C.E.
"We.. have a problem.."
The Leader sighed, putting the can of Panta in Shuichi's hands and standing up. "I won't be long detective!" He hummed, walking out of the room and closing the door behind him, leaving Shuichi alone in the room.
The detective took the chance to look around the room for possible clues. He made his way to a brightly colored closet, opening it up. Unsurprisingly, there were a couple of outfits that he recognized. The Phantom Thief had worn some of these in the past. There was a selection of different black and white top hats, and every clothing item had the D.I.C.E insignia on it. The Phantom Thief seemed to be a fan of checkered patterns, as all of the outfits had some variation of it. In addition to the outfits, there was a large selection of different masks, all with strange designs and faces that resembled a clown's.
Shuichi closed the closet, not finding anything exclusively of interest. He spotted some papers on a desk, curiously, he flipped through them. Each page had some kind of childish drawing of elaborate, over-the-top inventions that not even sci-fi movies would think of. Seriously, not even the Ultimate Inventor could accomplish some of these unrealistic blueprints. Shuichi shuddered at the memory of the time he met the Ultimate Inventor. She was indeed a genius, but she was also..... strange.
His thoughts were interrupted by talking coming from outside the room, he was curious to what the so-called "problem" was, so he pressed his ear up against the door to hear what the members of D.I.C.E were talking about.
"They're here. They have the building surrounded boss.. Probably tracked the detective's damned phone." A male's voice spoke.
"Ugh, damn it." The Supreme Leader hissed. "We need to get outta here."
"We can't just walk out—" A female's voice spoke up. "They value that detective as much as you do, boss, they'll do everything to get him back.."
The thief could only laugh. "No one values him as much as I do. Do the cops have eyes on the windows and roof too?" He questioned.
The female and male nodded. "Every one. Should we.. make a run for it? Jump off the roof and run to the other base?"
"We can't just leave!" A different girl spoke up. "The others are out at the shops, stocking up on food- Are we just going to let them come back right into the cop's arms??"
The leader shook his head. "No. Nobody gets left behind." His tone became much more serious all of a sudden, realizing that this was a bad situation.
A few of the members began to all speak at once, each offering different solutions that contradicted the other.
"Just- Just shut the fuck up for a second!" The Phantom Thief raised his voice in a way that was rare for him. He was so used to it being a game, being easy, that he was suddenly overwhelmed by this problem.
"Look. As long as the cops think we're going to hurt the detective they won't do anything rash- But if we don't do anything soon we're fucked!"
"...Do you think this'll be the end, boss?"
"No. No, no it won't be- just give me more time- J— Just let me think- I'll figure something out-" The thief's tone became desperate and anxious. It.... pained the detective to hear him like that. And he agreed, it wasn't fair for it to end like this. He could tell, the supreme leader deeply cared for his group. They were... a family.
And he was his beloved thief.
~🌺~
About twenty minutes passed, the Supreme Leader looked through the blinds every now and then, only to see the police camping outside the building.
He had sent messages out to the D.I.C.E members that were outside of the lair doing errands, warning them to not near the building. He was stumped. He had a few ideas in mind, but they were all flimsy in one way or another. He fumbled with the hat that he had taken from the detective anxiously.
Was this the end for his organization? The end of his fun? The end of his meetings with his beloved detective? It couldn't be.. He just needed to think of something, just one goddamn idea, it couldn't be the e—
"Neeheeheeh~!" A familiar laugh rang. The Supreme Leader's head shot up in confusion, for he didn't laugh. It came from outside, the laugh was distorted and loud, seemingly from a megaphone. The thief ran to the window, peeking through the blinds in confusion, the other five D.I.C.E members that were with him joined him at the window, looking out to where the police were.
The police were no longer looking at the building, all of their heads turned to the source of the distorted laugh.
A figure stood atop one of the cars in the parking lot, he wore a white outfit with the D.I.C.E insignia, an extravagant long cape, top hat, gloves, and of course, a mask. Anyone could easily mistake the figure for the real Phantom Thief.
He held a colorful megaphone, the Supreme Leader recognized it. It was a megaphone that purposely distorted the user's voice, he used it back when he first began his heists.
"Boss! Who the hell—"
"Shh!" The leader shushed his comrade, looking to what the imposter had to say.
"How goddamn pathetic can you be?!" The figure laughed as he spoke. "I knew you dodo heads were nothing like my beloved detective, but I actually didn't think you were that stupid~" He adjusted his mask, and put a hand on his hip.
"I'm really sorry to ruin your fun, but to be fair, you ruined mine. It physically pained me to see you fall for the oldest trick in the book-"
The police officers were not only baffled at seeing the Phantom Thief stand in front of them when they had assumed he was inside the building, but they were also confused at what he was getting at.
The imposter groaned audibly, shaking his head. "Let me spell it out for you. I. Tricked. You! I mean, did you guys seriously fall for the phone signal coming from the empty building trick?! You really are nothing without your detective, are you?" He laughed. "I'll give him back, don't you worry~ He's the only one I care about anyways, you guys are just a waste of time. You should be god damn grateful I made the time to come here and tell you." He waved his hand dismissively, turning around. "I'll be off then, I have a detective to return."
The figure jumped off the car, dropped the megaphone on the ground, and ran off. The police shouted at him to return, and began to follow the imposter.
The D.I.C.E members in the building were more baffled than the police were. They watched the police cars drive off to find the imposter, who seemingly disappeared.
The members looked to their leader for an answer, yet he was just as speechless as them. He took off his mask, feeling the hat he had on his head.
"There's only one person it could've been." The Supreme Leader smirked, putting together the pieces as he realized the identity of the imposter.
The D.I.C.E members followed him as he walked to the room Shuichi was kept in, he opened the door to an empty room.
"Naughty detective." His smirk could only widen as his eyes made his way to the open closet and the open window.
"But why would he—?" One of his comrades questioned in a confused manner.
"Neeheeh~! That's my beloved detective for you! He knows a good case when he sees one, doesn't he?" The leader looked at his friends with love struck eyes.
"Shit Kokichi, you really do like him, don't you?"
The leader smiled, taking the detective's hat into his hands. "What, you just figured it out?"
~🌸~
The detective panted heavily as he arrived at his apartment. He hadn't run like that since that one time he lost a bet to Kaito. It was especially hard with the outfit he had on, he wondered how the Phantom Thief wore this on a regular basis.
He couldn't help but smile to himself though. He couldn't believe what he just did, the risk he took to protect a criminal. The adrenaline gave him a rush that he had never really gotten before. He took off the mask so he could breathe better, once again wondering how the thief could wear this regularly.
He sighed, assuming that the police would be at his door soon to check if the imposter was true to his words. He decided to use the time to take a refreshing shower and change into his usual clothes.
After the shower, he got dressed and looked in the mirror, remembering that the Phantom Thief stole his hat. He always wore it to avoid looking people in the eye, he never had that courage. But he felt different today, looking back at what he pulled off. He stood right in front of the police, his uncle, his coworkers, and tricked them all into believing he was the Phantom Thief.
He could do without the hat. Besides, the thief did say he looked better without it...
~🌺~
Shuichi laid on his bed, tired out of his mind after the long ass day. He just finished a long interview with the police, and managed to convince them that he was fine and that the "Phantom Thief" returned him to his place safely.
He closed his eyes, feeling the cool night breeze from his open window. He had to ensure that no one ever found out about what he did. He made sure to tuck the outfit and mask he stole from the lair deep into his closet.
With everything he had to do done, he sighed in relief knowing he was going to sleep well tonight. He shut his eyes tightly, excited to doze off.
"That was quite the convincing performance, my beloved.." A familiar voice spoke.
Shuichi's eyes shot open, he sat up, spotting the masked thief on his windowsill.
"A-Ah— Thanks,,," He looked downwards, not even knowing how to react.
The Supreme Leader hopped into his room, putting his arms behind his head. Shuichi noticed he was wearing his hat.
"You really did surprise me, I'm super impressed!" The thief laughed, smiling widely under his mask. "This is exactly why I love you, detective! So unpredictable!"
Shuichi couldn't help the smile that crept onto his face. "..It's risky for you to be here... We're not friends, you know that right?"
"Of course, of course! I know we're not friends." The thief walked up to the detective, taking off the hat and setting it on his head. "We're soulmates~"
The detective could only roll his eyes, but he removed the hat, putting it back on the Supreme Leader's head.
"Keep it. I don't need it anymore.." He smiled at him.
The leader nodded, tipping the hat. "I'll cherish it." He looked back at Shuichi, there was a still silence between them.
The thief set his hand on his mask, he lifted it up slightly, not enough to show his face, but enough so that his mouth was visible. Shuichi could only stare in surprise. That was nothing compare to what the thief did next though.
The Phantom Thief planted a kiss onto the detective's cheek, he smiled at him, the smile visible to the detective for the first time.
He stood there dumbfounded, processing what just happened.
The thief giggled a little, lowering his mask back down once again. "I look forward to our next game."
"Y...Yeah..." The detective replied, still speechless.
The thief skipped to his window, tipping his hat at the detective, before jumping to another roof. He took one last look at the detective, admiring him standing at the window.
The detective waved at him, with a rose-gold gem in his hand.
The Supreme Leader was taken aback, surprised at his success to steal the gem back.
But he just laughed, holding up a thumbs up to the detective.
"You're full of surprises today, my love!" He smiled, running off.
The detective sighed with a smile, setting his hand on the cheek the thief kissed. He recognized the feeling that fluttered in his heart.
"Shit."