Chapter Text
It was late in the afternoon. Almond cookie had just left his workspace and was heading towards his house. He worked on his most recent case, which was that of the thief that went by the name ‘phantom blue’. This thief was known for stealing jewels and alway getting away with it. The police had not managed to even catch a glimpse of them, but they had been leaving clues behind in an envelope that always included a blue and yellow feather. Tonight, however, Almond was determined to put a stop to the thief’s evil deeds. Together with his adopted daughter, Walnut, he figured out where phantom blue’s next heist would be. Luckily, it was at the location where at the same time a masked ball was held, which made it difficult for the thief to recognise the detective when he was there.
Two hours before the ball, Almond was sitting in his room. He was trying to handle some paperwork, but his hands were shaking and he couldn’t focus. All he could think about was that he was finally going to end one of his longest ongoing cases ever. He wasn’t really progressing in his work and so he decided to go downstairs and grab a drink. Walnut was sitting at the kitchen table, drawing little animals with crayons on a piece of paper. As soon as he entered the room she got up and said: “dad, I know you’re busy but do you have some time to bring me to Cream Puff? She told me I could come over but I don’t know how to get there on my own.” Almond thought about it for a moment and agreed to bring her there, it was not like he was going to get any work done anyways. They both got in his car and in about 15 minutes they arrived at the house of Walnut’s friend. Almond had a chat with Cream Puff’s mother, and they agreed that she could stay there for the night, since Almond would be gone until at least eleven. After that he drove back to his own house.
It was finally time. He walked to the entrance of the luxurious building with a faint smile on his face. He would finally meet and catch the criminal he had been chasing after for so long. He walked through the large doors and entered the main hall. He was wearing a beige suit and a matching mask, it covered only his eyes but it was enough to make his identity unclear. He wondered who else he knew was going to be at the ball. He heard from his friend Latte that she and her older brother Espresso were going to come, and if Espresso was going he could also assume that Madeleine was also going to be there, since those two somehow always ended up together, even though Espresso seemed to dislike Madeleine.
He entered the room where the ball would take place. He immediately started looking around, searching for someone with long blond hair. He couldn’t assume that they looked like their description, since they were a master of disguise, but it was likely, because they liked to take risks, such as leaving behind clues about their identity for the detectives to find.
After some walking around, which didn’t give him any results, he decided to get a drink. He made sure to take an alcohol-free one since he needed to be completely sober if he wanted to catch the phantom thief.
He took his drink to one of the tables. He already recognised the two masked figures that were having a conversation there. Espresso and Madeleine were calmly conversing with each other, which was rare, since they always seemed to be bickering about something, even though that was mostly Espresso’s fault. They both greeted him and continued talking. After a while he finished his drink and he walked off again.
He was just putting away his glass when the music abruptly stopped. All of a sudden he heard someone shout: “everyone please remain calm. Someone robbed the owner of the building, and we will go into a state of lockdown to find the thief.”
‘Bingo’ , Almond thought. He immediately went up to the person who made the announcement, pulled out his police badge and said: “I am a licensed officer, please allow me to help with the search for this criminal.”
The man agreed and took him to the room where the theft happened. Almond then asked him to leave the room, and started his research.
He obviously already knew who was the one behind this, and just as he kneeled down to look at some footprints in the carpet he saw a yellow and blue feather slowly falling down. Immediately after that he heard the door close behind him. Shit. He jumped back on his feet and turned around to see a figure with a big yellow and blue top hat and a cape in similar colors stand in front of the door. His blood froze. This is not how he expected it to go. The thief took a step forward in his direction, and simultaneously Almond took a step back. He didn’t know if they were armed, but what he did know is that he himself was not. As the thief stepped into the light he could see their face better.
They were surprisingly good-looking. No, focus. They were wearing spectacles and had long blond hair with a streak of blue in it.
“Well, detective, you found me. Or did I find you?”
“You’re under arrest!” Said Almond as he grabbed his pair of handcuffs from his pocket.
“Are you sure about that?” Said the thief as they dashed forward. Immediately, Almond tried to cuff them, but without success. The thief got a hold of the handcuffs and tossed them in the corner of the room. They were now standing really close to the detective, who couldn’t back away further since his back was against the wall.
“I guess I won huh? What do I win, detective?” They looked him deep in the eyes. After a moment of silence the thief backed away and walked to the window. “So long, detective!” They exclaimed before he let themself drop down.
Almond stood still in awe for a moment, his face bright red. What just happened. Then he walked to the window and looked down, but not a trace of the mysterious phantom blue. He left the room and picked his handcuffs up on the way back, but as he was trying to put them in his pocket, he felt something.
A letter.