"So let's start with questions, shall we?"
"Yes" the woman replied as if she was in police station. The aura you gave off and your tone of voice was stern enough to keep anyone in the place "Alright. First question, when you lost your cat?" Your (e/c) eyes were locked to the small notebook in your hands. "Yesterday noon" she replied right after "I need the exact time, please" you noted down, waiting for her response. She thought for a few seconds before replying "it was 12 pm" you noted down, you were too focused, yet stressed to not mess your first case in front of your superior.
Little did you know the certain detective was watching from not quite afar
"What were you doing in that time?" You asked, looking at the middle-aged woman from your notebook "wait a second, am i being interrogated?" Not even three questions and she was annoyed, but you kept your calm "i'm just asking questions to lead us to your ca-" before you could finish your sentence, she began "i already came to police office and told them to find my cat before the noon. But now it's getting noon already and you are interrogating me--?" Her voice was louder this time
"Ms--" officer Minoura was about to step in but you didn't let, it was your case after all "calm down, Kitamura-San. According to your report i've been given, There isn't much details, not enough to lead us to your cat. That's why i'm asking you questions since you're the owner of the lost cat. Besides, shall i remind you who you're talking to?" You paused, you became more serious as the aura you were giving, turned tensed. Pfficer minoura didn't say anything while Ranpo smirked.
"telling a police where to find what in the form of order is quite disrespectful. Kitamura-San. Now, if you excuse me and if you want to find your precious cat, you have to answer the questions i ask" the woman didn't dare to say another word in fear of getting arrested for insulting police, she just nodded "Alright, when you last sa--"
"Hmm...it's getting interesting"
A very familiar voice snapped you as you turned around to see your old, detective friend with that silver haired boy beside him "you again?" Officer Minoura furrowed his eyes pissed as you gazed up at him, then back at Ranpo 'they know each other?' You thought
"Hey! Officer Minoura-San" he waved playfully as they walked to your direction "i believe we didn't ask for detectives this time" the officer closed his eyes "that might be right. But this time, i'm not here to solve any case" he stated, Atsushi was carefully looking at his surroundings, but deep inside, he just wanted to go back "then why are you here?" Officer Minoura asked, you didn't say or ask anything as you waited for his response.
"Well, you see......i wanted to see how your cop solves her first case" he smirked, barely opened his emerald eyes.
Your eyes snapped wide open as you felt a sudden shiver ran down your spine, you felt your cheeks heat up slightly. Great, both your superior and old friend who claimed to be the best detective had your movements under their eyes. This made you feel you can mess this up anytime, you hated this.
You gave the spiky haired detective a frown, although it was mixed with the slight cherry stain on your cheeks, you were frustrated. But now you were on your job! So it wasn't the time to make a drama.
"Ehem" you cleared your throat, holding your fist in front of your mouth before letting it drop to your side "Excuse me for the earlier. Where were we? Oh right, when and where you last saw your cat?" Your anger slowly died down once you focused back on the case "Yesterday noon, before i leave the house for work" her answer made your brows slightly raisen, your first case just started.
"Did you lock the door behind?" You asked as you finished noting detailes down on your notebook. It was a habit of yours since your childhood. Looking up at the woman with confident (e/c) orbs that were reflecting the sunlight, yet half covered by the blanket of shadow from your cop cap. Your question took woman aback as if she just forgot or remembered something "Y-yeah...i'm sure i locked it"
You weren't just looking at the woman, you were focusing on her movements and body language. As much as you learned, human's face's mimics can change depending on what they say and their actions. If someone is lying, they try to avoid eye contact and might strut in their sentence. If someone's hiding something, they talk less fast. You leanred all that back in your school. Maybe, school wasn't the best name to call it, it was somewhere that raised those who wanted to be detectives, to cops. And whoever was lucky enough, would graduate as a detective.
You weren't as lucky as them, you even forgot the name of the place that raised you
The woman in front of you however, didn't seem she was lying. She was looking right into your (e/c) eyes, her expression was yelling concern. You felt sympathy towards her. She was eager to find her cat, it must be so dear to her.
"If you're sure you locked the door and the cat was left in the yard, maybe the cat itself jumped across the wall?" It was the most clear answer to solve this rather easy case, but deep down, you knew the case wasn't ending here.
"It wasn't the first time i left her in the yard. Plus, i cut her paw nails" her answer made you think, 'this is suspicious' you thought. Cats couldn't climb a wall and jump across it without nails. The owner said it's not the first time she leaves the cat in the yard, then why the cat disappeared this time?
It only meant one thing...
You were about to say what you were thinking when you were interrupted by a fat man approaching you and officer Minoura.
The man was obviously over 55 years old, he had dirty white hair in crew cut. His skin was burnt. He had a crumpled looking blue T-shirt that was covered in dirt, the color was faded due to dirtiness of soil and his pants wasn't any better. Once you met the man, you narrowed your eyes as you felt disgust forming in your stomach. By looking at him, you could tell he hasn't been showered for long time.
"What happened here? Cops?" He asked in the most casual tone, his cigarette in his hand as the smoke hit you, making you choke on the smell. Ranpo and Atsushi brows while you were fighting with the disgust feeling inside "who are you?" Officer Minoura asked with a bored yet annoyed expression "I live here" once again, the unpleasant smell of cigarette hit you and you couldn't hold back this time. Now, you were sure the man isn't Japanese.
"we are from Yokohama's main police station, we're here to find a lost cat. Now, could you please stop smoking here, sir?" Anyone could sense the silent anger in the way you replied. You didn't expect the man to drop the white, thin material and squash it with his leg "which cat?" He asked once again, it was getting on your nerves seeing someone random interrupting your case randomly.
"Your cat?" He turned to the woman who was standing in her door frame. That's when a light popped in your head. The woman nodded. "Okay" he turned to leave before being stopped by your voice "could you please wait?" Your voice loud enough, he stopped and turned back. But before he could say anything, you began "you said you live here right? Then you might have as well, seen this cat?" You pulled out the photo of the cat, holding it in front of him. Atsushi seemed he is interested in seeing how the case will be solved while Ranpo was looking at the sight with closed eyes, but a frown.
"No i haven't" your eyes snapped wide a bit, it didn't even last seconds. Did he even look at the picture? He turned around to leave but you stopped him again, knowing something was up with this man. "Wait" this time, your voice was darker, more stern. Like those tone of voices used when someone has found the culprit. He stopped and slowly turned around "could you please tell me where you exactly live?" You stepped closer, stopping half way
"Why?" This was the answer that never crossed your mind, you raised your brows. Smirking in your head "Why? I'm asking you as a cop of course" you thought the case was getting interesting "(L/n)-San, let him go. You're on the case" officer Minoura stated, though you were unfazed as you smiled "i'm already solving my case, officer Minoura-San" you opened your eyes. Looking at the man as if you were seeing his whole life.
"If this man lives here, means he might know something we don't. Or he might've witnessed the cat or accidentally, help us find evidences" you explained relaxing. Your superior raised a brow at your answer, he let out a sigh "go on, it's your case. Just solve it" you smiled "Alright, you don't mind helping the police right? May i ask your last name?" You smiled
Atsushi began to feel awkward atmosphere as he was about to sweat. Gazing beside him, he saw his superior smirking. He flinched "uh...Ranpo-San, do you know who the culprit is?" The albino's voice wasn't above a whisper "Hmm?" The detective turned back to him, before smirking.
Yeah, he definitely knows
"Taruka" he answered bluntly and fast "Alright Taruka-San, i need to ask some questions. But you didn't answer my first question, where you exactly live?" You repeated your question to let him know you didn't forget about it "right there" he pointed with his finger, you followed the direction and saw a house almost same as the woman's house. Then you realized, his house was in front of woman's house. You noted down
"Can you tell me what were you doing yesterday at 12 pm?" You asked in monotone voice, yet stern enough to not let anybody escape the question "I was out of the city" he answered right away "when did you back?" You asked according to the previous question "....7 pm" it took a few moments "so you're telling me you haven't witnessed anything? The cat? Evidence? Nothing?" You asked like you were giving up
But you weren't
You were very close to solve the case
"Sorry, i can't" he said, you let out a sigh, the woman looked defeated. You turned around "then i think we have no choice but to check secret cameras" you said it on purpose. And what happened next was exactly the one you expected "Wait, why secret cameras?"
"Excuse me?"
"I mean, no need to do such thing and waste your time, the cat probably jumped across the wall"
That was already enough for you
"I cut her paw nails!" The woman stated, frowning at the old man. She was going to break down for her lost cat
But you've already solved your case
You texts on your phone for a moment before stuffing it back in your pocket
"Taruka-San" your voice stern again as you slowly turned around "Why are you so stressed?" You asked. You noticed the uneasiness in his burnt face the time he showed up. Sweats threaded to run down "b-because....No..i'm not stressed...it's normal" he was strutting, you smiled at his foolishness.
"Then why you tried to stop us from checking the secret cameras?"
"B-because i said for your own good" you didn't need to look at his disgusting face again, you already knew he was lying
"You've made lot of mistakes by now, Taruka-San"
The man froze
"Hey (L/n)-San, what are you doing? Go back to your case" officer Minoura groaned in annoyance "i'm already on my case, sir. And i've solved it" you smirked, and so Ranpo
"When i showed the picture of the cat, you refusedto even look at it. Saying you haven't seen it right after. isn't that suspicious?" You explained, the man gulped
"B-because as you said, there are lot of cats similar. Is it even a reason to interrogate someone?" he raised his voice
"I don't remember mentioning the owner's name. But somehow, you knew the lost cat was Kitamura-San's. How?" You added, you could see the man sweating as he was trying to come with an excuse. "Also, if 'there are lot of similar cats out there' is your reason, you could just say "you aren't sure" but, saying you haven't seen the cat when you barely looked at the picture, just made everything worse for you. Or maybe, you already knew what the cat looks like?" you didn't give him time to reply. Officer Minoura and the woman was looking with widen eyes
"Another mistake you made was when i asked where were you yesterday noon. You said you were out of the city, but when i asked when you returned, you hesitated to reply, as if you were thinking. It's impossible to forget the time you returned if it was just yesterday. I thought i'm just over doubting but your answer made it clear. You came up with 7 pm, when it's already dark. So we cannot bother with questions and you can run" You explained, but you weren't finished yet
"Also, i'd never said where was the cat last time, how did you know it was in the yard?" You asked, reminding him of when he said 'it might have jumped across the wall'
Atsushi, Officer Minoura, and the woman with the name Kitamura who was the owner of the cat, all had their jaws dropped
"(L/n)-San, here are the pictures!" A man yelled in cop uniform, running. Stopped when he reached you as he handed you a few photos "Nishimiya? What are you doing here?" Officer Minoura couldn't be more confused "i texted him to get me the photos secret cameras took yesterday. Thank you" you explained and grabbed the photos turning back to the obvious culprit
"Lies....lies! If it was my fault why did i walk to police?" He yelled while you were looking at the photos "simple, you wanted to know why we are here, so you could get close to the investigations. You tried to get close to the poloce and distract us so we wouldn't think the culprit is you" you swap over the photos
"B-bullshit, it wasn't me!, that cat would have bite!" He yelled "the cat's nails has been cut, there was no way it could climb the wall and jump across it. Most of animals doesn't bite someone as long as they smell like them. So the only meaning is....the cat was stolen" you looked up at the man to see he is sweating in fear.
"Plus, didn't you just confessed? 'That cat would have bite' how can you be so confident about it? Unless it did bite you?" You enjoyed telling the culprits their mistakes while everyone stood still in their places "you gave off all the evidences yourself. And now, it's confirmed" you rolled over the photo to let the man see himself in the photo, jumping out of the wall with a cat in his hands.
"You jerk!" The woman yelled at the man as the man began to run in his fullest speed "Wait!" Officer Minoura shouted "Atsushi" once he heard his superior, the albino pushed himself forward as he ran to the man.
The tiger boy was faster as he pushed the man in the ground, grabbing his arms behind his back "let me go!" He shouted, you walked and stood beside, looking down at him "I you would've ran away, you would've made it obvious it was your doing, so you decided to buy time and distract us. But you had no clue polices are smarter than you thought. You gave off all the evidences against yourself once you showed up, and i took it" you smirked.
"The cat's race was British shorthair" the spiky haired detective spoke as he walked and stood towards you "h-how do you know?" The woman asked "you looked over the houses to see who had animals with high prices, and you have stole those with special races to sell, you even stole a black dog with rare race before this" he added, smiling satisfied. You looked over at him. He also saw his past doings. You smiled. Feeling proud
"But you are money's slave. You wouldn't even spend five yen. That can explain why you wore this poorly" he added as he slightly opened his emerald eyes gazing down at the man. You raised a brow, then chuckled. Turning back to the criminal.
The man was out of words "that cat ran away!" He barely shouted
"You are under arrest for stealing animals and selling them" your voice cold and stern as you pulled out your handcuffs
The man was already taken away with the cops to the jail. Now it was just you, Ranpo with his albino colleague and officer Minoura "good job, (L/n)-San. You were successful on your first case, congratulations. You are an official police now" officer Minoura said satisfied. You smiled joyfully as your face was brighten by joyous "Thank you so much!" You bowed almost 90 degree, before standing straight. Your cap go in forward and back with your head. Ranpo was smiling his usual while Atsushi sighed in relief "that was close.."
"But my cat is still nowhere to be found" you all turned to the woman, her voice shaked as her expression was like she was about to cry, Ranpo let out a chuckle as you all looked at him confused "that's wrong" was all he said, you were about to say something but interrupted by the albino "oh, is that the cat..?" His brows was raisen as everyone was confused
"Meow"
The woman immediately turned around, her eyes shone upon seeing her beloved cat as she ran to the cat, crouching once reaching it "Nina!" She opened her arms as the cat jumped in her arms. You all smiled at the sight. "I think that's enough for today, let's go back to the station" officer Minoura stated you were about to follow him before being interrupted by the certain detective.
"If it's okay, can i borrow your cop?" He asked in his usual, playing like tone
"Ranp--"
"No, let's go. Officer (L/n)" he cut both Ranpo and you off, a small "yes" escaped your lips. Ranpo pouted "how mean, this how you answer the great detective who have helped you in many cases?" Officer Minoura irked at that "let's go, Atsushi" he began walking away "Y-yes!" He soon followed behind detective.
You lowered your steps as you stopped before getting in car "Officer Minoura-San?" You were looking down, almost. He turned back "c-can i go with Ranpo-kun? Just a bit! I'll be back to the station soon!" He looked at you bored, then sighed "take it as a reward for your first case" he turned to get in the car. Your eyes snapped wide open "Thank you!" You said politely
The walk was giving you pleasant feeling, maybe it was because you succeed your first case, you stretched your arms "i did it! I solved my first case!" You smiled closed eyes as you let your arms drop to your sides "yeah, took you long enough" this was the last thing you wanted to hear "Hey!" You frowned at him, annoyed "I solved the case in less than miniute" he shrugged "yeah, thank to your deductions" you didn't know if you complimented or meant it sarcastically. He hummed smiling.
"You two seem to be close riva--"
"No way!" Both you and Ranpo interrupted the poor boy as Albino's breath hitched "i'm sorry!" He yelled "don't worry" you smiled "at least, i solved it successfully" though you knew you might have taken quite a while, you were satisfied with yourself.
"Yeah, you solved your first case" Ranpo smiled, his sentence didn't seem it was sarcastic, you smiled at him as you three walked away. You decided to enjoy and relax a bit before going back to station. The walk was enjoyable.