2025-07-03: I Don't Just Play One On TV
- Log: I Don't Just Play One on TV
- Cast: Shinjiro Aragaki, Goro Akechi
- Where: Port Island Station - Back Alleys
- OOC Date: July 03, 2025
- IC Date: June 04, 2012
- Summary: Goro Akechi comes to visit an old acquaintance in Shinjiro Aragaki, about a past event they both share a connection to...
<Pose Tracker> Shinjiro Aragaki has posed.
It is a warm day in Tatsumi Port Island. Most people are trying to keep cool, wearing light clothing and fanning themselves as they hang out in public with friends.
There is an exception.
Shinjiro Aragaki, in his thick red coat and beanie. He is neither hanging out with friends, out in public, or dressing for the weather. Instead, he's in his 'usual spot', a back alley not too far from the street. Graffiti marks the boundary between the 'civilized' world and the world of one such as he, with chain link fences, shuttered doors, metal crates, and litter spread around. Drunks can be seen in the distance, day drinking and ignoring their responsibilities.
Shinjiro sits on a metal crate on the ground level next to a flight of stairs, an unopened bottle of ramune resting at his side, glancing at something or another on his phone. It's an entry-level smartphone without any case or screen protector, yet seems in decent condition.
It feels like he's just here to watch paint dry. Why could that be?
<Pose Tracker> Goro Akechi has posed.
"-told you before and I'll tell you again, ain't seen nobody named Aragaki around here."
Is the first thing Shinjiro might hear, as things get loud. A softer, response, that sounds quite dubious butts in shortly after, one - that's vaguely familiar, but only vaguely, many years removed from previously. "Is that so? Well then, I'd like to check for myself, if you don't mind."
"Can't you take a hint? I do mind. Why don't you scram, 'Prince-kun'? Last thing we need is some private dick sticking his nose in our business back here."
"My... I assure you that my only interest is in Aragaki-kun. Is there truly any need for things to get ugly like this? All I'm trying to do is speak to an old acquaintance of mine... violence is completely unnecessary."
He does speak much differently than he did as a kid, but he was always pedantic, always considered himself the smartest person in the room.
"You deaf or just stupid? I said SCRAM-!" There's a momentary sound of... a scuffle. Like someone threw a punch, only to be met with a swift, brutal reprisal.
"Muh nohe! Dis ahhoh buhok muh nohe!"
"I only said it was unnecessary." Akechi chides, as he smiles, shark-like, and steps on the now 'grounded' man's hand, his other hand already taking out a handkerchief to wipe the blood off his metal briefcase. "Not that I was unwilling... now, let's try this again. In light of your 'changed circumstances' would you perhaps like to rethink your answer?"
He always was a dirty fighter back then too.
He subtly applies - vague pressure with his foot, and the man whimpers in pain, "Stuhp! Stuhp! Nah'a'snitsh man."
<Pose Tracker> Shinjiro Aragaki has posed.
Shinjiro's attention is pulled after a few moments by the sounds of his name. Is someone looking for him? None of his business, they can take a hike.
He does take a look after it continues, but can't make it out clearly just yet. Though, as he hears 'Prince-kun', his brain starts moving. Why is that familiar... private detective?
But it's the violence that gets Shinjiro to slowly rise to his feet. Standing at the same height as Akechi, Shinjiro steps over to his direction, looking over the injured man. Briefcase to the nose - metal, probably broken in a bad way. Good effort, but he should have snitched in this case.
"Tch." cuts straight through their words, moving to draw their attention and give the man time to scramble.
"Beat it," Shinjiro says, his words directed at the man on the ground. "You'll live," he says if he hears any protest about the injury or Akechi.
Even as a kid, Shinjiro didn't have much for emotion through his words unless it was frustration. Always cutting through the bullshit and to the point. But even so, he doesn't seem very happy with what just happened, a perpetual frown on his face, tension in his body language, and standing at full height instead of a slouch.
Only once the man takes the point and is gone, does Shinjiro speak up again, moving to wave a hand to direct Akechi back over to his spot where it'll be more anonymous.
"What do you want, Akechi? Aren't I a little out of your league now, you too refined to be doing this crap?"
<Pose Tracker> Goro Akechi has posed.
As Shinjiro appears, Akechi looks at him with that faux affable smile he always wears... his hair silky yet messy, in that boy next door quality. He's still dressed in his summer uniform. Sleeves rolled up, tie loose... holding a metallic bludgeon, or rather briefcase, with his doofy detective agency logo upon it.
Like he just came here straight from a case.
"Ah, there you are, Aragaki-kun." As he glances downwards, "Was that so hard?" He says to the man on the ground, who whimpers, as Akechi...
... relents, lifting his foot, as the man scrambles up to his feet. At first like he might try to exact some revenge, at least until Shinjiro tells him to beat it.
"Remembeh 'dis..." He mutters as shambles off, holding his bloody face with his uninjured hand.
"I'm sure that you will." Akechi replies, softly, before turning to the true focus of his attention, chuckling at his greeting, "Is that really any way to greet an old acquaintance? Certainly my own circumstances have changed... but I've never forgotten where I came from."
One might doubt that, after all, people like Shinjiro aren't on TV often, save for documentaries for the rest of Japan to be voyeurs for how the other side lives...
... or in mugshots, being perp walked or the like...
"In fact, one might say that's why I'm here." As his eyes suddenly grow, far more serious, the faux affable smile fading, "To discuss one of the oldest unsolved cases I have on the books..."
... No, indeed, he's quite serious.
"... the murder of Miki Sanada."
This may be news to Shinjiro, after all, it was ruled an accident by the fire marshals and investigators... faulty wiring in an old building...
... but Akechi, the sullen, unpopular disliked boy did insist he saw someone... just, noone ever believed him.
Why should they believe a boy who lied as easily as he breathed?
<Pose Tracker> Shinjiro Aragaki has posed.
Once the man's gone, Shinjiro relaxes a bit. He believes he can take Akechi if it comes down to it. Aki always said he has a mean right hook, and he'd know.
"We'll see about that... though, one of the last times I saw you, you were *also* kicking someone's head in. Or getting yours kicked in, more likely." Shinjiro lifts a hand, as if briefly weighing it, before putting it in his coat pocket.
"I thought instead you'd be doing some sort of Moonkist commercial, swilling shit and saying it's gold, instead of poking at shadows," he says as a thought closer. This reminds him of his drink, picking up the ramune bottle to fiddle with it.
He's mostly disinterested up until Akechi reveals he has a case. Why the hell does that concern him? He's not a detective. He sits around watching paint dry in alleyways and seeing shitty concerts that are standing room only with bad mixing.
It's not until the name is spoken that his brow raises automatically, showing that Akechi's got his attention. Ten years ago... one of the worst days of his life, for multiple reasons. Yet, it's etched into his brain, every part of it. Akechi's claims are remembered.
Shinjiro didn't believe him at the time. Why would the troublemaker not just be trying to cause more?
But now, Shinjiro thinks, Akechi's a star detective. He has no reason to stake his career on a case he made up, digging up trauma by talking to someone he hasn't seen in a decade. He could be fucking with Shinjiro, but that's unlikely. Why deal with someone he likely thinks is beneath him?
He slaps the marble down with surprisingly accurate force and takes a drink. After a second to process... "Go on." He settles on neutrally enough.
<Pose Tracker> Goro Akechi has posed.
Shinjiro almost certainly could. Akechi was a dirty fighter as a child, but Shinjiro already has the advantage of knowing that his 'Second Coming of the Detective Prince' image hides a nasty little brat beneath it.
Maybe all people who 'move up' in society do... which is why living as Shinjiro does is more honest at least.
"Haha..." He tries to keep his eye from twitching, instead smiling back, "... the folly of youth, I definitely had... issues, controlling my anger, and not knowing my limits. Let us say that those losses were... educational, in a sense."
Some disgusting Agepan food cart chain, Akechi thinks but doesn't actually say, "Well in essence... that is television." He smiles plainly at Shinjiro, "Unfortunately, if one is to have any weight in today's society, then one must play the game of 'branding'... it's a bit boring, so I'll spare you the details."
Indeed it's true, there's no need to stake his reputation on such a case from so long ago. So cold that no one even acknowledges it was a murder at all.
"I'd rather a... change venue first, to be sure we're not being overheard."
One might suspect that he doesn't want to just hang around in a dirty alleyway... but it's at least a reasonable suggestion.
<Pose Tracker> Goro Akechi has posed.
Assuming Shinjiro accepts, he's moved them back to the Port Island Station, and as Shinjiro might notice - far - far away from any Police Officers, choosing a bench with it's back to the wall...
... and no corners for anyone to hide around. Setting his briefcase down, he then takes a seat himself. "First... I would like to apologize, for my behavior back then. For what I said that night."
And perhaps to his small credit, he doesn't actually try to make excuses. 'I was a child' 'I was hurting from not being believed' 'I too was scared'.
"But rather than prove that merely with words..." He moves the lock on his case, before unclasping it, and bringing out a manila folder, labeled:
Criminal Suspect #501: Old Maid
Shinjiro may have even heard of the Old Maid, the Rumor from Sumaru - the Joker Killer. Call your phone, your own number, and give a name.
The Old Maid will arrive to murder them for you.
However... when Shinjiro opens it, he'll see a picture of a disheveled man, with a shock of white hair, and an unhinged look in his eyes.
And he might remember back then, if he searches his memory, Akechi insisting:
I know what I saw! He was over there! He was huge, with white hair! And he kept talking about - about Voices!
"Tatsuya Sudou..." He identifies him, "... the son of our country's Foreign Minister, Tatsuzou Sudou. My investigation of the fire had been stymied at every turn for years. At first... I thought it was because the police department wished to save face... it would be quite an embarrassing turn of events for it to come out that a fire that claimed the lives of children labeled an 'accident' turn out to be arson."
Akechi settles in easily, back on the bench, allowing Shinjiro to look through as he pleases. "But then I became a consultant at the Special Investigations Unit... and was able to dig deeper. Suspiciously large sums of money that changed hands from the the elder Sudou's subordinates to law enforcement agencies all over Japan... always an agency investigating a murder, or an arson."
Akechi shakes his head, "I actually feel a little insulted by how simple a matter it was to track this down, once I had the means to do so... truly this man must think he's untouchable. He had his son quietly committed to a secluded Sanitarium in Sumaru City... and the officer investigating the case was scapegoated as a recipient of bribes... disgraced, and imprisoned for a crime he did not commit."
...
...
"And that is where the younger Sudou has been for years, hidden away as an embarrassing stain on his father's 'good name'..."
A lengthy pause... at that moment... almost like he's getting lost and thought... "... and remains still, to this day, if my sources are correct."
Wait hold the phone, if Sudou is the 'Old Maid' then how does Akechi reconcile that contradiction, of him being committed? Indeed, his hand is on his chin, as if he's contemplating that very issue.
<Pose Tracker> Shinjiro Aragaki has posed.
Shinjiro just nods once as Akechi admits he got into fights and lost, before speaking. "Sure, let's go."
Once they're at the bench, he takes a seat. He listens to the apology. He nods, though he takes a moment to figure out his words. "I'm not the one you should be apologizing to," he settles on.
Though, once the file is presented... his eyes widen again, looking over it as Akechi speaks. He reviews the info finely - this is pretty shut and closed - Tatsuya Sudou.
"The bastard existed... damn."
Considering the file, Shinjiro takes a breath. "Why me?"
Akechi didn't go to Aki. Akihiko would have already flagged Shinjiro down, use it as an excuse to pull him back into the fold.
He considers the rest of the information. So, he's the arsonist. That tracks. But the Old Maid Killer? Impossible...
Unless you read Dark Side of Sumaru. Then, everything feels a little possible.
But even so, it's hard to believe. He's locked in a sanatorium. Either he's breaking out and on a loose leash (which is possible, but seems like Akechi would know by now) or someone's letting him out (which is more likely... but who? How?).
Shinjiro sighs. And then, it dawns on him. Exactly why he's involved.
"Ah. I was wondering why you came to me. You can't actually investigate, can you? You've already dug, but if you show you're investigating it, the SIU snaps your leash and you're fucked. You need plausible deniability, especially investigating a hardened killer you have personal ties to."
He drinks his ramune, taking a long swig.
"So you go to the one person with stakes no one will miss. If I find him, find out how how he gets things done, maybe even do something, you win. If he stabs me in the gut, you don't lose... just two anguished souls in an unfortunate encounter. Even if you feel bad, you can wipe it away with your endorsements."
But why is Shinjiro changing his tune? He knows why, in his heart. The one truth of the matter that may never change.
He doesn't like Goro Akechi. He might have... had he actually changed.
Even so... he returns the file with a thoughtful look. "No promises. But if I'm to be your sacrificial lamb, I'll need to get legwork done on the city. I know some people at Cuss High, I'll start there."
<Pose Tracker> Goro Akechi has posed.
"... Maybe not." Akechi admits, slowly to the idea he should be apologizing to someone else.
But on the matter of him existing? "Yes, unfortunately so. His psychological profile suggests that he is exactly the sort of man who would set fires and commit unspeakable murders for his own personal self-satisfaction."
Shinjiro does ask, why him, and Akechi does look, somewhat ashamed? It's hard to read him in this moment. "In a sense, I am coming to you first because I know this will be much harder for him."
Harder for Akihiko yes, but perhaps harder for Akechi too.
"And, I know that at that age you three were inseparable." A trio that did not include him, he's definitely not bitter about that. "From what I remembered, you are precisely the type of man who would want to protect Sanada-kun..."
A beat.
"... even from himself. So many of us are running from their past selves, some faster than others... as if to leave that part of ourselves so far behind as to never allow it to catch up... perhaps... an impossibility."
Again, he looks lost in thought on the idea of how impossible it is to outrun one's past, perhaps - he sees the fetters binding him to his own, until the - accusation... and Akechi after a time says with a chuckle, "Aha - you truly don't mince words do you? I suppose some things don't change after all."
There is a smile, and a shake of his head, "If you have been following my cases at all, you will understand that the police are no friends of mine. I am in fact, universally despised among them, even as they continue to consult my services... for bringing to light their various corruption scandals. The Foreign Minister though is... different. I have to be quite cautious and..."
...
...
...
"... would you believe me if I told you that I believe that a significant portion of the Sumaru City police department is compromised? It is not the leash I am worried about. Should I not handle this with discretion... then my career might come to an untimely end."
But - he hasn't yet denied, or addressed his second point. Instead his gaze looks away for a time, thoughtful, distant.
"Perhaps you won't believe me... but it's nothing so ruthless. Like it or not, we share a connection to that incident from years ago. And I felt that I owed you and Sanada-kun a debt for that time we knew each other, and words that can't be taken back. It never sat well with me... her death."
Is he actually saying it haunts him to this day... perhaps he believes the monsters of his past are to be confronted. Or must be confronted, and that he's giving him a chance to confront them too.
"Ah... perhaps I should make myself more clear. I'm certainly not calling upon you to murder him... that would not serve my purposes at all. My own sense of justice demands that I do everything I can to stop this monster from killing again, that I bring him, and everyone who allowed this monster to thrive in the shadows to justice. It hardly matters to me if it's the Foreign Minister, or the entire Sumaru City police department in the end... my intentions are to expose everyone who is involved before this is over."
He turns his way, again looking serious, "If you're willing to work with the detective that caused you so much trouble as a child, then I would accept it your aid. And if your own sense of justice won't permit an outcome where he survives the encounter..."
Akechi stretches a hand his way, as if offering it, "...Then I will consider my debt paid at least, and shake your hand as we part to follow our own personal sense of justice." He does smile, perhaps somewhat chagrined, "Even if mine would demand that I bring you in afterwards, for the murder of Tatsuya Sudou."
<Pose Tracker> Shinjiro Aragaki has posed.
"You really are a detective, huh." Shinjiro snorts as Akechi points out about Akihiko, about how it'd hurt him, about how Shinjiro would want to protect him.
About how people are running from their pasts. Hah. He has no clue.
Though, Akechi makes a point about how he could die, instead, if Shinjiro's reading him right. "Then this goes pretty deep. Doesn't make me feel less sacrificial at all, though. It just means it's my neck on the line more than yours."
Shinjiro weighs the information. If he does this, *he* could die. But something Akechi doesn't know about that helps his conscience on that front. He needs to do this for Aki. He can't tell Akihiko, though... he'll demand to help. He has a nice life now. He doesn't need Shinjiro in it.
Something Akechi says causes Shinjiro's brow to furrow. "Don't get it twisted. I'm not going to take his life. He might be bloodied, but he'll be alive when I'm done."
Even with people like that, you can't...
"I'll work with you," he says as he rises. Since he's already making a promise, he stretches out his own hand, if Akechi still wants to shake on it. "For Aki's sake. I'll find a way to reach out if I learn anything damning."
One thing he DOES understand about Goro Akechi from back then: if he says he's going to bring this guy down, he probably intends to do so or die trying. There's always been an energy to him, an intensity, that shows he means business.
Not that it matters much what he's like. They'll never be friends.
<Pose Tracker> Goro Akechi has posed.
No clue whatsoever. If there's one person who is definitely not running from a past he is bound to... it is Goro Akechi.
"Heh. I assure you I don't just play one on TV." He says with that affable smile again. A light joke.
He does nod as if to acknowledge the point he makes, "I can't truly dispute that point. I'm more protected by my status alone. A police officer on the elder Sudou's payroll might not think twice about murdering you on the spot to protect themselves..."
His smile next feels like gallows humor, "... for me, they'll at least have to put some thought into where to hide the body. Naturally, I have no intention of dying, or allowing you to be another victim, either."
Indeed...
... he does stand, and takes his hand, shaking it firmly. "I'd appreciate that... and for hearing me out, for that matter."
Indeed, Akechi knows that they're not friends, but despite it all - they share... a connection, even if it might never be one of friendship.
Shinjiro is one of the only people who knows him from his time before becoming the Detective Prince. "And given that I so correctly deduced your mindset... I'll leave it to you to decide the timing on when we should bring this to Sanada-kun's attention."
There's a sheepish smile, as he puts a rubs a hand to the hair on the back of his head, "It's not that I'm avoiding responsibility. I just think, when someone is delivering bad news, it's better that it be from a friendlier face than mine to him."
Plus, he's seen Akihiko's boxing records. Perhaps he's confident in his ability to weather a fight, but it'd be inconvenient to go on TV with a black eye.
He'd definitely work the sympathy angle of it having happened while subduing a suspect though.
<Pose Tracker> Shinjiro Aragaki has posed.
Shinjiro actually smirks a little at the gallows humor. They'd probably make it look like they were subduing a criminal and it went wrong. After the shaking of hands, he puts his back in his pocket, finishes off his ramune, and straightens up.
"Yeah. I'll figure it out." He looks up to the sky for a moment. Maybe he'll write Akihiko a letter, for after it's all said and done, instead of having to deal with his friend himself.
He can't ruin his life again.
Shinjiro turns as if to leave, facing the direction of Hagakure Ramen.
"Later," he says with a wave of his ramune hand.
And then, he's gone.