Chapter Text
He couldn't believe he had forgotten an umbrella. It was a small, simple mistake, but it was a rather irritating one. It could certainly play in his favor, sure. Being relatable in the eyes of the common folk usually provided a better public image. Even so, he would rather not be seen like this.
The storm had picked up when he had gotten out of his apartment, and by the time the rain had started, he was too far from home to turn back without risking being late. It was just some cloudy skies originally, and with the wind he was certain today would be a mix of on and off rain. He just thought he'd have more time before the rain began. Shame he was mistaken.
This would most certainly be fun. He could already imagine the images spurring up. Surely some fan must have caught sight of him dashing through the rain, ducking beneath cover already. It wouldn't be long before some tabloid commented on his misfortune. Once again, people would only sympathize with him for it, (besides the higher ups), but it didn't spare him the embarrassment of being a fool.
Akechi let out a soft huff as he hid beneath the overhang of a shop. A quick pause in his trip to fix up his appearance and take a break from the rain. His hair was already damp, and at this rate he'd enter work looking like a used mop. He was certainly grateful that his papers were safely tucked away in his case.
Under the small shelter came a blond girl. She looked unbothered by the weather, only pausing to take care of her appearance. On that note, her appearance stood out like a sore thumb in these streets, blond hair and blue eyes were rather uncommon, but he didn't really have the time to care about the finer details. He was most definitely going to be late.
The girl shifted her bag, checking it carefully, and upon second glance Akechi realised that he recognized her face. A model, one that he had seen on magazine covers on his way to work. She was quite popular, though not as skilled as most. He also noticed her uniform. Formal, and one of the more prestigious schools. From the looks of it, Shujin. Surely she would be late as well.
That is- if it hadn't been for the car approaching them. Akechi was weary of any car that slowed near pedestrians. Some of them end up being scummy journalists who will do anything they can to get a good article. Others are just creeps. By the time the car had slowed to a halt and the window rolled down he had figured out which was inside.
"Good morning, want me to give you a ride to school? You're gonna be late," A square chinned man sat inside, curly hair with a calm and honest look about him.
It was always easy for the ones who looked friendly enough. Akechi's eyes narrowed as he glanced down, straightening his tie idly. He wanted to see where this would go. The blond didn't seem to have his air of distrust though. Or at least she hid it well.
"Um, sure. Thank you," The slight hesitation could be equally just lack of speech confidence, or anxiety about going, but Akechi really didn't know enough to say.
"Hey, aren't you that detective prince kid?" The man's gaze turned to him, "I'd offer you a ride but I can't be late to work dropping you off," He gave a light chuckle at the end of his words.
"Ah, that would indeed be me," Akechi hummed, and put on a smile, "Shujin academy, correct? I would suppose that's rather far from my work," Akechi returned the laugh, the thoughts in his head shifting as he kept his pleasant mannerisms he used most everywhere going strong.
With a closer look at the man's face-
"Ah! You're the famous school coach! I see," It clicked. Both were familiar then, "I shouldn't keep you. Have a good day,"
The man, who Akechi couldn't quite remember the name of, seemed to have a burst of pride at the recognition, giving a polite nod before he began to drive away, rolling up his window as he did. Akechi went to look for the license plate.
His gloves were too damp at this rate to even bother using his phone, so he had to catch it quick. Luckily for him, it wasn't all too hard to memorize small important details anymore. And it was only easier for him as he tapped a rhythm on his arm that in some odd way, his brain connected to the plate numbers.
He was lucky he did it quick anyhow, because not even a moment later he got crashed into by some other teen.
"God dammit man! Watch where you're going!" The boy sputtered out nearly instantly, stumbling back, "Damn Kamoshida. Thinks the whole place is his effin' castle. Just does whatever he wants,"
"My apologies. Kamoshida? You mean the coach who just drove by?"
The boy stopped to actually look at him, eyeing him up and down before rolling his eyes, "Yeah, whattda you care? You're not a Shujin student anyways. Not like anyone there stops him either though," The boy huffed before returning to jogging down the sidewalk, probably late as well.
Akechi paused. "a castle?" He put his hand to his chin before shaking his head. He had places to be. With a turn of his heel he began to make his way to his workplace, hoping he'd get away with being as late as he was.
That didn't mean the thought really left his mind. He had the plate number, and a name. It was a good start in case he decided he wanted to look into it on his own, but he was curious about the castle comment. Perhaps, if things got out of hand, he could help out others for once. Maybe, just this once.
------
Akechi tapped his fingers on his arm, tired, stressed, and impatiently waiting for an officer to come discuss with him like they said that they would. Incompetent as usual though, they seemed to be late. Perhaps he shouldn't judge, he had been late himself, but that didn't stop him.
Instead of staring at the door ahead of him any longer, he huffed, turned, sat down on a nearby chair, and waited. There was the bustling noise of people around, as well as the nearby street, but he didn't quite mind the background audio. He’d rather have something versus dead silence or a loud tv blaring.
What did catch his attention was a young woman's voice. It seemed to be coming from a side room, an officer's office no doubt, and she almost sounded distressed. It was that tone that drew his attention, but a familiarity in her voice that made it linger. He believed it was the student he had met earlier.
"You can't just let him get away with this!" She chimed, insulted and wounded about something or another.
"I'm sorry Miss, without solid evidence or a warrant we can't look into anything," Alright. Bullshit.
Akechi's gaze turned slightly more towards the door, his head shifting just enough to hear the conversation better without seeming like he even knew it was going on. He knew exactly why officers would behave like that. There was an off chance it was a mistake, a rookie, but more likely than not they were told to keep their mouths shut, and were far too happy to comply.
"That can't be right! I'll get other people too- just please do something!"
"Again Miss, we can't. I'm sorry but I'm going to have to escort you out of my office now,"
Akechi took that as his question. Forgetting his on hand investigation. He didn't need the files he came for anyways, they just would have been nice, he made his way closer to the door, meeting face to face with the girl as the officer escorted her out.
"What seems to be the issue here?" He asked innocently, seeming nothing more than concerned for the teen whose face was flushed and had tears peaking at the corner of her eyes.
"Ah, this young lady has a report, but there's not much we can do besides file it and keep it on hand in case more info comes up," the officer let out a sigh as he motioned to her. She just kept her mouth shut and stared at Akechi. She had obviously put together that they had encountered each other before.
"I see. It is a rather shame that your department is so limited. If you please, I can take her off your hands. I don't mind having to write up an extra report anyways. My current case is a bit dull," Akechi gave a soft smile to the officer, but it came with the light hint of arrogance and threat. It was more of 'I want to check this out for myself' rather than an offer.
"Er- Yes, sir Akechi-kun. That would be very useful. Though I doubt there is much that can be done," The officer nodded taking a light step back, "The school won't be very compliant in your investigation I believe,"
Akechi gave a small laugh, "But when are most people ever? It's quite alright. I am glad to be of service," He shifted his gaze to the girl.
She seemed to be eyeing him more suspiciously now, must be smart to not completely trust his kind act. A lot of things are too good to be true in this world. She did seem to relax more as the officer moved back into his room, the door closing with a small click.
"Perhaps we should go? I don't suppose you want to talk about this in an open space, do you?" Akechi turned his body some, pausing to let her follow or object, moving towards the door.
"Y-yeah,," She spoke softly before shaking her head, using one arm to wipe at the tears on her cheeks, "I- I know a restaurant we can talk at.. If that's okay,"
She still seemed wary of him, but without that resentment she had for the cop. It made sense, he offered to do more than the police ever would in a case like this. Unless their hand was forced by the public eye, that is.
"Of course, you don't need to tell me any more than you want, though I am more useful the more I know," Akechi chimed softly and opened the door for her as they made their way over, keeping it open as she passed through before following.
"You're the Detective Prince, Goro Akechi right? You better not be doing this just to hit on me," She gave an accusatory sting, Akechi was impressed she had such a bite.
"Oh! I'm sorry if I came off that way. Believe me, I barely have time to eat lunch. I most certainly don't have time for those sorts of relations, and women aren't really my type anyways," He merely shrugged it off, and together they made their way to the restaurant, the click of their shoes against the concrete sidewalk drowned out against the cityscape.
------
"This is a nice place" Akechi mused, he hadn't actually eaten today, so he didn't mind talking at a restaurant, yet at the same time he couldn't really say he was all that hungry.
"Yeah," The girl seemed almost awkward to start. He couldn't exactly blame her, talking to a teenager who looked your age must be jarring when you have to treat them like a cop or detective.
"So, I suppose we should start with names. Though you already know who I am," He gave an amused hum, trying to lighten the mood. It was always easier for people to talk when they felt more comfortable, they may even reveal more than intended without realizing it.
"Oh- yeah! I'm sorry," Her eyes lit up with the realization that she hadn't even introduced herself, before glancing to the side with embarrassment, "I'm Ann Takamaki,"
"A pleasure to meet you Takamaki-San, though I wish it could have been different circumstances," He fidgets lightly, it's not intentional, but it helped him focus and get the job done. His tone shifted to take a more serious, but concerned tone. Being too cold would put her on edge, but so would being happy-go-lucky, "If you're comfortable sharing, can you tell me what you tried to report to the officers today? I hope you don't mind me taking notes, but I will have to make a case file if it is serious,"
"Well, I- Kamoshi-" She paused tilting her head down and pursing her lips, "Let me figure out where to start."
Akechi simply nodded, "Take all the time you need, I can have time until my next interview."
"I am a second year student at Shujin Academy," She began carefully, and from the start.
He very quickly clicked open his case, grabbed a notepad and started jotting things down though. He didn't mind going over what he already knew. Confirming things is important in its own right.
"My friend Shiho also goes to this school, and she's on the volleyball team,"
"I see, don't rush yourself, slow but clear information is always the most useful," Akechi tapped his eraser against his chin.
"Y-yeah. Thanks. We've been friends for a long time, and she really likes being on the team. I love her and I'd do whatever it takes to support her," She sighs, it was obvious she was stressed, based on the build up she must have to make hard choices thanks to this.
"And I take it, something happened where you had to do something to support her?" He doesn't like playing therapist, but he'll get nowhere if he demands things from her like a cop.
"Yeah," She took in a shaky breath, "There's this teacher at our school. Mr. Kamoshida. You saw him this morning."
"The school's prized coach?"
"That's right. He- he blackmailed me. Said if I didn't do what he wanted Shiho would be off the team. Everyone thinks I'm in a relationship with that creep and he doesn't just target me but a lot of the girls," Her breathing got shakier, "I see the boys leaving practice with bruises and cuts. They look like they've gotten in a fight but they say it's just part of practice."
Akechi took a deep breath. This was worse than he had anticipated.
"And the adults don't do a damn thing about it! No one cares! Everyone seems to treat him like a god!" She sounded like she was about to break down with the sudden outburst, and Akechi had to take a moment to process how to react.
"You need to calm down," Akechi spoke lightly, treading on eggshells and dodging landmines to keep her from melting down, "I am going to be blunt, but I need you to be honest with me, Takamaki-san. Has he abused you?" The question was sharp and to the point, Akechi's gaze matched it, being serious, but there was concern layered beneath.
Ann froze, trying to steady her breathing. For a minute she didn't respond, but he was fine waiting. It was a cruel situation for anyone to go through, let alone a kid, doing it for a friend, and being ignored by anyone and everyone around you.
"y-yes."
Akechi jotted down a few more notes before closing his notebook, setting his pencil down at its side, "That's all I need to know, thank you for being honest with me Takamaki-san. It's a very brave thing you're doing," people need encouragement, especially those who are about to break, "I'll file a report and start an investigation right away. If what you say is true it won't be hard to get the evidence I need. You've done a lot for me, but I need you to take a break and lay low for me now, ok? We want to avoid the possibility of him lashing out on you. If you could get me pictures of the injured students, that would be incredible, but you've already done quite enough."
"...Thank you," Ann folded her arms on the table and rested her head on them.
She looked like she was about to cry, and Akechi was most certain she was. He didn't know what he had gotten into, it was deeper than he imagined. Part of him whispered in his ear that he's no better than the adults who hide this man's actions. Part of him wondered that, if he could expose even the smallest amount of corruption here, maybe he would be able to start making up for his own stained hands. Whatever the case, he would help her.
What more could he do to break away from the man he hated? What better to do? That man would never help a girl like her. He'd spread the corruption, or just watch it go by. He wasn't that man. He would be different. And what better place to start than taking a king off his throne?
He broke from his thoughts after a moment, shaking his head and running a hand through his hair, before putting his notepad away again. Once it was secure he looked at Ann. Her shoulders heaved as she cried into her own arms.
"Hmn, I- I am not particularly hungry, but I believe they should have some good desserts here. If you’d like, we could have some before we go," He spoke softly. He had no clue how to comfort her, so he offered something for comfort instead.
Ann tilted her head up, and gazed at him with puffy eyes. The blue stood out against the red making them seem brighter, more intense than before. She sniffled and wiped her eyes, carefully going to grab a tissue to dry her face.
"Yeah, that sounds nice," She muttered, a small smile appearing on her face.
"Alright, I can order once you've decided. Also-" he grabbed a hold of a napkin and scribbled quickly in the pencil he still had, before shoving it towards her, "So that you can message me when you need, and I can send you updates. Perhaps if I have free time we could come here again as a more casual outing."
"Oh!" Her mood shifted with the distraction, drawing out her phone as she chimed, and quickly typing it in, messaging a quick hello to Akechi just to confirm, "Hey... thank you Akechi-kun."
"Please, just Akechi. It's the least I can do," after all I've done. He didn't say the last part out loud, but he thought it.
"Okay then Akechi, thank you. You're really saving a life,"
Hmph.
Him, saving a life.
He could feel the amusement flash in his eyes, and didn't bother to hide it too much.
Maybe he liked that idea.