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The detective - Anthony, as the thief knows him - bursts out of the back door mansion and into the expansive yard, and throws his gaze over the rolling green sod. He runs across the veranda and down a short hop of steps to stand on the grass. If there was someone out here, he’d see them. Unfortunately, all he can see is the empty moonlight and a vacant yard. Out of breath, he takes a moment to pant and regroup, think on where the thief - better known to the public as Eclipse - was last seen in their chase. There was no way he could have made it outside without Anthony knowing, that he was sure of, yet the chase had definitely led him to the back of the mansion, with nowhere to hide but, well, out.
Tonight a private collection was being raided. While usually the phantom thief Eclipse was known to steal from museums and repatriate artifacts, it was not wholly unusual for him to target private collectors as well, the wealthy who hoarded artifacts as ‘oddities’ or ‘exotic wonders’. However, it was much harder work for Anthony to deal with when it came to a private owner being targeted. For one, the collectors themselves were typically… eccentric, and not in a good or fun way.
They also usually got more in the way of Anthony’s planning for how to corner the thief. Trying to get blueprints from a rich snob never went over well; Anthony assumed all rich people had something to hide, and while he’d love to dig up the skeletons in their closets, unfortunately he was assigned the task of protecting their likely ill-gotten valuables. Though, despite being the detective to come the closest to catching Eclipse, he had to admit, when it was for a private collection, he maybe didn’t put his whole weight behind the work. Especially depending on the treatment the collection’s owner had given him.
That didn’t mean he wasn’t trying because, well, it was no fun if he didn’t try. They were rivals, nemesis for a reason. It wouldn’t satisfy either of them if one or the other wasn’t playing the game of cat and mouse.
Back to the present, a realization dawns on Anthony. Of course he was led to the back of the mansion with nowhere to go but out, because if he took the bait and went outside, it would give the thief a chance to try and breach the perimeter of the mansion - get outside. And Anthony has likely given him just enough time to get away by pondering this move. He puts his hands on his hips and debates his next move, when there’s a sudden woosh behind him, his back to a hedge that lines the railing of the veranda, and hands close around his head.
The moonlight is eclipsed by a familiar face popping up upside down in front of him, with a smirk.
“You’re letting me get away, detective~” Eclipse, the thief - Elliot, as Anthony knows him - teases from his position.
“Then you better run before someone sees us like this,” Anthony chides, but there’s a smirk on his face as his head is tilted back to look up at Elliot, the thief who not only stole victory from him many nights, but also stole away into his bedroom for just as many.
“Too true detective! Forgive this reckless impulse of mine, but when you don’t bring your A-game, sometimes a risk is necessary to make things more fun,” Eclipse laughs, and presses a quick kiss to Anthony’s lips. With that, his hands withdraw, and the moonlight returns to Anthony’s sight, as he twists around to see Eclipse running off. …he counts to three before starting up the chase again, running after him into the night before reaching the border of the property. Placing his hands on his hips he lets out a sigh… another loss tonight. …Well, Anthony thinks, his lips still warmed from the quick kiss, it’s not so bad to lose every now and then, if it brings out certain impulses.
