This story is going to take place post manga, so if you're not one to read fics on that subject because you haven't read it, read no more. If you haven't read the manga, and are unsure of how it ended, well… the basic rundown is Ragnarok sort of took place. Loki confronted Odin, who turned out to be Balder in control of Odin somehow. Freyr attacked Fenrir and Yamino while Loki was away, completely destroying the mansion. And then Loki… sort of won thanks to the Norns taking stuff into their own hands with Odin still not quite sure what happened with them, but they fixed the situation apparently, and then Loki is sent back to Midgard/Earth, no longer a god, where he finds Mayura no longer has any memories of him. So from that brief WTF description of the manga, we continue on from where the manga left off. If someone wants more info on the manga, do a search on the group Hemuloki, and it'll pop up with tons of info on the manga.
This also means I'm basing the characters more on the manga than the anime. Mayura in the anime is annoying as hell, where as in the manga she could be considered somewhat intelligent, and not a complete ditz, mystery obsession or not. Warning though, I think they all might be a bit OOC at first cause… well, I'm not used to writing these characters. I'm trying though, and any tips you guys can give me will be appreciated!
I still say Kinoshita-sama rushed the manga ending. Damn her. But I still love her.
Disclaimer: I do not own Matantei Loki, or any of the characters of said manga/anime. They all belong to Kinoshita Sakura, except for the ones I make up.
Please enjoy!
Mischa Anniba
Kitsune no Soen
By Mischa Anniba
Prologue
A House in Ruins
Mayura wandered through the ruins of what seemed to be a huge house, tears spilling from her eyes she couldn't control, nor understood why they came. She was so depressed and saddened by this place, but why, she didn't know.
As she found herself over the remains of what she assumes was the hallway, she broke down and collapsed upon the door, shocked with herself and her inability to control her actions.
Why was she so sad? What was this place to cause such a reaction from her? Why did it all seem so familar?
Suddenly, near her foot she heard a slithering, and noticed a snake disappear into the rubble.
She shot up, thinking "Snake!" before hearing a bark from somewhere behind. When she turned to look, a tall blonde foreigner was smiling down at her.
"Welcome to my detective agency."
Chapter 1
First Night – Arise Enjaku Detective Agency!
"Papa, where is it?!" Mayura yelled. It was already 4:20, if she didn't hurry, she'd be late. "Mayura ran from closet to closet, scanning over each and every shelf.
"I told you, it's in the cabinet in the sitting room!" He yelled from somewhere in the house.
Cabinet. Sitting room. Riiiight. "I ALREADY CHECKED THE CABNET, PAPA!! IT'S NOT THERE!" Mayura tore at a laundry hamper, willing her stress to cause the camera to magically appear in the clothing. She hadn't been late yet to her job, and she was determined not to let today be the first, especially since they were on a case.
"PAPAAAAAA-" She was cut off as she ran right into her father, holding the SLR camera. Her eyes grew big. "The camera! Where'd you find it Papa?" She smiled. She was saved!
"In the cabinet, in the sitting room. Where I said it was." His expression showed of some annoyance.
"But I-"
"You're going to be late, aren't you?" Her father asked, shoving the camera at her. It was bad enough he was letting her work with a foreigner who gave him the creeps, so he wasn't too happy with giving up some of his belongings to help with what he sees as "helping" the two continue with their "business".
Mayura was about to argue she had checked the cabinet when the reality of what time it was hit her. She was going to be late. "You're right Papa! I have to go!" She gave him a peck the cheek, checked to see she had the film she just bought, and then with camera in hand, ran out the door.
Misao Daidouji "humphed", watching her leave, and headed back to sweeping the stone pathway to the shrine. He really didn't like that Loki or whatever he called himself.
Mayura ran through the streets as fast as she could, determined to make her lateness as minimal as possible.
It had been about two weeks since she met the detective at the ruined lot, and already they had solved two cases, and what more she actually got paid. Sure it wasn't much, but it had stopped some of her father's objections of her working for Loki. Those cases where small however, liking finding a missing cat, but today was something slightly bigger. Today Loki said he expected them to be able to end their latest case, a case Mayura happily dubbed "The Case of the Mysterious No Good Cheating Husband!" Of course the more Mayura thought about it, the less it seemed mysterious.
The guy was a jerk, cheating on his wife with the secretary, something the wife suspected all along and wanted Loki to get solid evidence on. Loki hadn't wanted to take it originally, but Mayura insisted since she thought they would need to solve something more than a missing pet and middle school pranksters. Enjaku Detetective Agency needed a name to be reckoned with, and that ment getting more cases and clients, no matter what the case. So what if this one just entailed following a guy and taking pictures? She was now a private eye! And cheating husbands beware!
Loki had given in on the basis that she would be the one to take the pictures. Then Loki and Mayura had followed the man, Mr. Hanzo, the last couple of days and found out his daily schedule with the mysterious mystery woman, the secretary. So today she would bring the camera since Loki owned no camera, and they were to meet at the fountain outside the park downtown.
Mayura had just turned to a corner and skidded to a halt when she noticed Loki was happily chatting away with a couple of girls near the fountain. Mayura shook her head and corrected herself. What looked like girls were actually women. Older than her, gorgeous and leggy, and apparently just off the train from Tokyo if their clothing said anything about them. Loki was dressed not too shabby either, in some nice dark slacks and a dress shirt, and seemingly enjoying his conversation with said leggy women.
Mayrua wasn't quite sure of what to do for a second. Would Loki get angry with her interrupting the conversation? She knew Kotarou was one to get annoyed when she interrupted him in similar situations, but Loki… he seemed different. He was after all a detective, and she was his assistant! Surely he wouldn't get mad at his assistant for interrupting, especially seeing as they were on a case? He WAS waiting for HER after all.
Mayura took a deep breath before taking a step out to cross the street.
And immediately jumped back with a yelp as a truck sped past her, blaring its horn. After the truck had passed, Mayura found herself sprawled on the sidewalk, the camera thankfully safe in her hands, undamaged from her fall. He rear sure hurt though.
She gave the camera a good looking over, and was happy to see it was ok. Papa would be so mad if I broke it… As she finished her thoughts, a shadow fell over her.
"Are you ok, Mayura?" Her head shot up to find her "boss" (as she did so love to call him to others) looking down at her with concern in his foreign, blue eyes.
Mayura swallowed before giving a nod and replying. "I guess I sort of… tripped."
He gave her a soft smile before offering his hand to help her up. She hesitated taking it for a second, making sure her face was hidden from him as she got up so that he couldn't see the flush attacking her face.
No matter how hard she tried, and how many times she told herself he was just her boss, she couldn't control herself. It never failed that when he made the least bit of physical contact, like a pat on the shoulder, or a brush of the hands, she would redden like a tomato. The problem was he wasn't the usual scruffy looking detective type she was used to seeing on TV shows and movies. He was, well, simply gorgeous. With his height, blonde hair, blue eyes, and pretty face, he was easily model material, a career she was sure he would have success in if he ever pursued.
So Mayura wasn't about to deny she was attracted to him (because what woman wouldn't be?), but he was her boss, and she was his assistant. Better yet, she was a detective's assistant. They had to retain a professional relationship, as he father called it, and besides, why would he be interested in a skinny little high school girl when he had gorgeous women around him. Thinking of which, she wondered what happened to the leggy women. She looked around her, but saw no sign of where they went, and it was better off that way. She didn't like the glares she received from women who saw her with Loki-san.
"I was a bit worried about you there for a while. You're late."
He face lost all color at that as she looked back at him. "I'm so sorry!" She bowed quickly. "I didn't mean too! Papa told me where his camera was, and … well it wasn't there! I had to look all over the house for it!" Mayura took another deep bow. "I'm SORRY!"
"Heh. " She heard and slowly began to stand back up straight. "It is perfectly fine Mayura. You are only a couple minutes late, and I'm sure our two… suspects haven't even started off for their usual walk in the park yet."
"Really?!" He face brightened at the news. "So I didn't miss the mystery?!"
A sheepish smile touched his features as he began leading her towards the park. "Again Mayura, it's not much of a mystery from the start. We already know who the woman is. Now it's just the matter of collecting the evidence our client wants, which you'll be able to get with a couple of photographs."
Loki let out a small sigh as he sat down behind a bush between two trees with a good view of the park bench their 'prey' was currently sitting at, doing the usual cuddling couples do in a park. Mayura had already begun snapping away with the pictures.
It just seemed so degrading for him to be hiding behind a bush in a park for a case of adultery, a subject he didn't really personally find many problems with. Again he wished he could have avoided such a case, but Mayura was right. They did need more cases under their belt if they wanted the detective agency to thrive. Not that he really cared.
"If I didn't know about Mrs. Hanzo-san, I would never think that man capable of being so cruel." Mayura whispered next to him.
"Cruel?" Loki took another glance at the spring jolly couple on the bench under the cherry teas. It was spring, so they were all blooming, dropping the pinkish-white petals to the grown. It was almost the exact same spot he remembered meeting Mayura in his current form over a year ago, before almost making it back to Asgard, which Urd stopped. Mayura was rather happy when she learned he wasn't going anywhere, not that she could remember it now. The mind wipe that followed the Odin/Balder issue took care of anything a mortal would recall of him.
"Yes! " She replied. "He's cruel. Here he is, a married man, while his wife is at home, wondering and worried about where he is, and here he is, cheating on her!"
Loki thought on that for a bit. He COULD go into trying to explain to Mayura how flippant love can be, and how two people rarely are right for each other to begin with, but something told him not to. That and how he highly doubted his wife was worried about him, seeing as she seemed to know about the 'other woman'.
"I wonder if this is what it's like to be papzipapzi…" The girl mused at his side.
"Papzipapzi?"
"Yes! Those people who do nothing but sneak up on famous people and take pictures of them doing stuff."
"You mean papparazi."
A pause from her before she muttered "oh." And then soon after was followed with an "uh oh…"
Loki turned back to look at the couple she was watching to notice Hanzo-san looking towards their bush with interest. Mayrua, pulling away, brushed against a couple of branches alerting the man something was in the bushes if he didn't know already. He said something to the young secretary on the bench before getting up and making his way in their direction.
"What do we do Loki-san?!"
What to do? There were several things they could do. They could run, or they could try playing it off. Either way he didn't care much, as worried as Mayura was. What could Hanzo-san do to someone seemingly taking pictures of him? The question Loki was more concerned with was what would be more amusing?
Mayura was looking at him with wide, scared eyes, leaves strewn in various places in her hair, and the camera that the man was sure not to like. A smirk played at his lips as he ran through all the situations in his head. Sadly some of them wouldn't be too appropriate for his "assistant". He did promise her father after all.
Loki grabbed the camera in Mayura's hands and quickly set it on the other side of the tree near her so it would be out of site. Loki then grabbed Mayura and pulled her to him, making them look rather intimately embraced. As she started to redden, he gave her a wink with their faces just millimeters apart, causing her blush to increase.
He was just trying not to think about how long it had been since he was last in a situation anything similar to that with a girl when Mr. Hanzo shoved away some of the branches. From Hanzo's angle all he could see was the back of Loki's head until Loki turned around and pulled away from Mayura, attempting to give Hanzo-san the best shocked expression he could, which turned out to be pretty good with his experience.
"Wha-" Began Hanzo-san as he looked down on the two.
"Can I help you?" Loki asked with an icy tone as Hanzo continued to stare down at the two of them. Finally he finally turned around with a "humph" and headed back to the secretary, all the while muttering something about foreigners and school girls.
The so called threat now gone, Loki looked back at Mayura who continued to sit there a very deep shade of red.
"Mayura?"
She slowly came out of the daze and looked up at him, then at Hanzo's retreating form. "Do... do you think we have enough pictures to be finished, Loki-san?"
"I suspect we may of ruined Hanzo-san's mood too much for him to continue on. " Loki smiled as he watched the man and woman rise up from the park bench. "Apparently for him it doesn't take much. And yes, I do think we have all the pictures we need."
Mayura hummed happily as they headed back to the shack. It was a good day. A very good day indeed.
The client had received the photos and paid them well, wrapping up another case in her new career as a detective, and so another case was solved!
However her mind couldn't help but be drawn back to the bushes every now and then. She knows it was just a ruse to keep from being caught, but he was oh so close to her, close enough to kiss. She had to shake her head every time thoughts like these came to her head and remind herself that there was really nothing between the two of them. They were supposed to have a "professional" relationship, something her father imprinted in her head many times over, and embarrassingly enough, added the birds and the bees to it as well after she announced and introduced Loki to her father as her "boss." He was against the idea, but after seeing she wouldn't change her mind, he resorted to the lectures. She was 17 now, about to finish high school, and her father felt the need to tell her what the birds and the bees were when she got her first, real job.
She sighed to herself. Well at least he cared enough to worry about her.
"What kind of tea should we have?" Loki asked as they turned around the corner. Loki kept well stocked of tea in his shack, and it was the one thing Mayura liked doing most every day she visited him. Drinking tea. For some reason it just seemed so right with him, and he did have a lovely tea set. She liked drinking tea around him so much that the presence of his pet snake never even really bothered her. They would sit there, sipping away at tea while they talked about everything from their current case to how the other's day had been. And she couldn't forget about his adorable puppy, Fenrir. Shack or not, it was a great place to hang out to her.
They were just beginning to get in viewing range of Loki's home . "Earl Grey?" She asked, getting a nod from him. "I wonder if Fenrir's been alright all cooped up in the house all day. We probably could of brought him after all."
Loki was just starting to respond she noticed him suddenly stop in his tracks. Mayura looked to where he was staring, and noticed a person waiting outside his shack, too far for her to get a good look.
"You'll have to forgive me again Mayura," Loki said "because it looks like I have a visitor, and we won't be able to have our usual pot of tea." She couldn't read anything out of Loki's expression, but nodded slowly.
The figure waited outside the house, apparently aware of Loki now, waiting. All Mayura could see of him was he was dressed in black, and too far for details.
"Ok, that's fine. Should I be here the usual time tomorrow, Loki-san?" She asked, somehow getting a familiar feeling from the figure.
"That's fine. " They said their goodbyes, and with one final look back at the shadowy figure, Mayura ran off.
Loki slowly approached the figure. "I really didn't expect to hear from any of you so soon, if at all."
"Why's that? " The man stepped out wearing a black cape, and old-Nordic style tunic, also black. Apparently he was still in mourning. A large, delicately engraved war hammer was strapped to his belt. "There's nothing stopping me from seeing you."
Loki smirked. "Of course, what's to stop the new Allfather?"
"Feh. I don't like that title." Thor replied, studying Loki. "How's Daidouji-san?"
"She's doing fine. She's eager for mysteries to solve, as always." He replied, looking down the block at where she disappeared.
Thor gave a small chuckle. "That's good to hear."
"Shall we take this inside and get to what you really want to talk about?"
Thor paused for a second, a sad look in his eyes, and then looked among the ruins of Loki's mansion to the shack. "Of course."
Well, there's the first chapter. I plan on this being a big multi-chapter fic. I suppose we'll see if I'm up to the challenge. Any comments would be really appreciated. Was it too OOC?
And I need to find a better way to format these documents because I don't like how it looks on fanfiction dot net. What's the best format for an uploaded chapter?