Work Text:
Sojiro may be getting older, but he certainly wasn't getting any dumber.
He saw the pain behind Akira's eyes when he stepped through the door after being held in police custody and--god--getting shot in the face. He had no trouble finding the bags under the poor boy's eyes after a sleepless night. He heard the cracks in the boy's voice from screaming in his nightmares. He remembered, clear as day, when the poor boy stepped through his cafe door and ran to him in tears. And since then, there's been a hint of sadness, of grief, every time he spoke. For a while there, he retreated back into his shell, turning into the quiet, resigned boy he met in April, who just stood and nodded and took whatever was given to him.
So when the light-brown-haired teenager responsible for all that trouble, all that pain, casually stepped through his door, he just about choked on his cigarette.
"You better as hell have a good reason as to why I don't send you out right now.", the man growled. Despite the offensive tone, though, the teen didn't seem intimidated or apprehensive. In fact, it was almost as if he hardly had any emotion at all. "...I just came back from the dead?", he attempted with dry humor, wincing as he felt the energy in the room. Sojiro gave him a cold glare. "...And... I'm here... to apologize.", he admitted with a much softer tone. Sojiro scoffed. "You tried to kill my son, tried to frame my kids, all for some political sham. How do you think you could possibly apologize enough to have me forgive you?"
Akechi gave a long, quiet sigh. "I do not require your forgiveness. I am simply here to tie up loose ends.", was his reasoning as he carefully took a seat at the bar. His tone was quiet, and his wording was slow and deliberate; he was choosing his words very carefully.
"You see, I would like to say that my mental state is a recent development, but...that would be a lie.", he started, staring at the dark drown wood of the counter with a fixed concentration. "I admit that I may not know you all that well, but I doubt you've ever had to deal with abandonment, Sakura-san.", the boy who had eyes far too old for a teenager's almost whispered, barely glancing up at the man before returning to stare at the countertop. The day that he was given the news of Wakaba's passing came to mind. The first time he had looked into Futaba's eyes since she had followed after. "I doubt you've ever had to deal with the feeling of hopelessness, the despair that comes from it. The realization that you never had a purpose, that you didn't belong in this world.", he described in a smooth tone of voice, as if he was telling a whimsical story to a child.
"I was a nuisance, and no one wanted me. I had no chance of going on. So, when a man in power offers you a job position that allows you to be a monumental stepping stone in a grand scheme of change, to bring about the better of society, who was I to even consider denial?"
Goro still remembers his own awakening, clear as day. The day, the hour, the moment Robin Hood offered to allow him to grant justice to those who had been cruelly turned away from it. He also remembered the first time Loki offered him the better deal. Justice was only part of his desire, he had realized. It was revenge he was truly after. Even if it was secondhand. Revenge for the people who turned him away, revenge for the sorry excuse of a father who had left him, revenge for the group of teenagers, actual children who had fought against him, everything he had stood for, and yet, naively, still tried to treat him as an equal.
But he never was.
That much has always been obvious.
"Cool story, still murder.", Sakura remarked with a cold tone, trying to withhold a scoff. All the sob stories in the world don't make up for the fact that he is still a murderer. He consciously and intentionally took lives, while having every opportunity to step down, to say no, and didn't.
Akechi didn't seem taken aback in the slightest, however. In fact, he looked to the man, as if expecting him to insult the teen further. He looked back down at the cup when he realized it wasn't the case. "True. I truly have no excuse for my actions. I had become twisted. I was cruel and ruthless and delusional.", he described, his own crazed laugh echoing through his mind like a ringing in his ears. "But now, by some divine power, I suppose, I stand here again. And this time, I'm going to make sure that I put my best foot forward.", he finished, giving Sakura a little fake smile that looked all too familiar to the one he would flash on TV to persuade an audience. Needless to say, it didn't work.
"That's great and all, but how do I know I can trust you?" Akechi smiled, clearly expecting this question. "Well, for one, I'm no longer a 'Detective Prince'. I don't have any sort of authority; if that soothes your worry any.", he started with an apathetic tone. Sojiro furrowed his brows in confusion and a little bit of surprise.
The young man looked back down at the counter after seeing his expression. "Surprisingly, the police force was unwilling to give a man who was supposed to be dead his job back.", the harsh passive-aggressiveness in his voice was enough to make the man grimace. "That's rough, buddy.", he remarked, offering a light-hearted sort of sympathy. Akechi huffed out a bit of a laugh in response. "I just can't believe they replaced me so quickly.", he remarked as Sojiro put a fresh cup of coffee in front of him.
Glancing rapidly between the cup and the man, Akechi slowly took the cup and gave a little sip. A nostalgic feeling swept over him, almost overwhelming his senses. He almost welcomed it, though trying to fight the feeling of the comforting atmosphere letting him relax. He was here on a mission: to apologize, explain himself, and begin the process of turning over a new leaf. And so, he continued on.
"Secondly, everything I could have listed as a motive turned out to be a hoax, planned on the basis of my utter ignorance. Just getting used again, with the plan of getting swept under the carpet when all is said and done.", he described, taking a long sip of the warm beverage, keeping the cup in his hands as he thought aloud. The teen shook his head, a look of frustration at himself taking over.
"It was plain as day, too. But I actually thought that a man who employed me to take out his enemies while he put on a public face was actually going to go through on his deal." As he spoke, his eyes glassed over, void of any emotion. He took a final swig of the coffee and barked a short, humorless laugh. "God, I'm gullible.", he chided under his breath with a heavy sigh.
Akechi set his money on the table and stood up, bowing in gratitude for the hospitality. "I'm off to the courthouse. See if they can legally make me not dead. I'll contact the others when I'm done. May get a haircut while I'm at it.", he listed off, absent-mindedly grabbing the end of a strand of hair and twisting it beneath his fingers.
"Oh, Kaori runs a salon not far from the subway station.", he offered, before his mind finally clicked with what had left his mouth. He really just called Ryuji's mom by her first name, huh. "She, uh, she's cheap, in comparison to most in the area. Does a good service. Plus, if you manage to convince him to go with you, I'm pretty sure she does Ryuji's friends for free." "I didn't realize you two were close." Sojiro shrugged, crossing his arms as he looked away in embarrassment. "It's a recent development.", he quickly explained, trying to get away from the conversation topic.
"Am I on good terms with you?", the teenager slowly asked, looking down at the floor in anticipation. Sojiro took a huff of his cigarette, taking the opportunity to really get a look at the kid before making his decision. The way he stood there, awaiting his decision, reminded him an awful lot of Akira when he first walked into the cafe. In that case, the two of them did seem awfully similar. Both were dealt a shitty hand from the beginning, given an opportunity to fix it, and that's where they began to separate.
A part of the man groaned, going on about how he should have kicked him out from the start, not to listen to a word that this guy had to say. But another part of him knew that people could, can, and will change. After all, Akira was far from the same kid he was back in April. Maybe Akechi could change too, if given the right push.
"...Getting there. Starting, at least.", he summarized. Goro perked up, looking at the man with wide eyes; he was genuinely surprised by that answer. "More specific, please?", he asked, his voice barely above a whispering volume. The man sighed, scratching his chin as he tried to put the details into words. "For everything you put them through, both my kids and so many other people, I still don't forgive you, not for a second, but... I won't turn you away at the door."
The wide eyes softened, showing a sign of relief as the teen visibly relaxed at the response. It was just speculation, but Sakura thought he had seen a spark of joy in his expression as well. A more genuine smile began to take form as he looked at the man, and kept his gaze there. "That's pleasing to hear. In that case, I hope to see you soon, Sakura-senpai.", he bid as a farewell, bowing again before making his leave.