Darker than Black: A Heart is not Black

A/N:

There are just not enough DTB Fan fictions out there, so I thought I'd try and write out what was in my head. This is the first story I've ever written, and is mainly focused on Misaki and Li because there was just not enough interaction between the two in the anime. There are other characters involved, like Saitou and November 11 in later chapters.

If you are new to Darker than Black, this story may contain spoilers after episode 9.

A big thank you goes out to Sakabatou77, because although this was my idea, he had a big part in cleaning it up for me, so this is his story too. I hope you enjoy it. :)

Disclaimer: I do not own the Darker than Black anime. All rights belong to Bones, Tensai Okamura, and Funimation.

xxx

Chapter One: Blue Eyes and Lousy Jobs

Hei lay calmly on the circular bench surrounding a tree on a warm sunny morning, with his arms crossed behind his head, waiting for Huang to come brief him about their mission. Yin sat next to him petting Mao who laid on her lap calmly wagging his tail. Hei was starting to get upset that Huang had called a meeting so early in the morning, demanding for them to be on time, but he himself was running late.

"He's here," spoke up Yin.

Hei showed a sign of relief, as Haung approached the three of them while puffing on a cigarette. He stopped in front of Hei looking displeased.

"What happened, Hei?" Huang said screaming. "Your job was to keep an eye on it."

"What?" Hei asked confused, sitting up. "What are you talking about?"

"Don't play dumb with me; you know it was stolen last night," Huang shouted, stumping his right foot on the ground and throwing his cigarette down. "Now the Syndicate is so upset with us that…"

"Why are they upset with me," Hei responded irritated. He was already upset that they had sent him, the Black Reaper, to baby-sit a trivial thing, and now he was getting blamed for something that wasn't his fault. "Don't they know I wasn't even on the night shift? Wasn't it Red's watch?"

"They think he may have stolen it."

"So do they want me to take him out?"

"No, they want you to watch him and call me when he makes a move. Use this."

Huang threw him a cell phone. Hei snatched it in the air and looked down at it.

"They trust me using a phone again after frying the other ones I had?" asked Hei.

"No, the Syndicate wants you to use it just for this mission. When Red splits the restaurant, call the number that's on the speed dial and tell LR-924 the news so he can retrieve the item."

"LR-924?" questioned Mao. "Are they serious?"

"Yes, they are."

"You don't need him. I'll take care of it."

"No, you won't, especially with the Foreign Affairs snooping around!"

"The Foreign Affairs? Why would they deal with a petty thing like a robbery?" asked Mao.

"How should I know? Now get to work!"

Huang trotted off, as he pulled out another cigarette and complained about contractors. Hei stood from the bench and started to walk off to get to his so-called part-time job.

"Hei," spoke up Mao, causing Hei to look over his shoulder at him. "If Red did steal the item, he probably called the police for a distraction so you wouldn't be able to interfere with his plans. The Syndicate is probably thinking the same thing. They're having the Foreign Affairs do the investigation so the public won't get wing of our existence, and probably to see what clues we're gathering concerning the stolen item." Mao looked up at Yin. "Yin, keep an eye on things for Hei, okay?"

"Hai," nodded Yin.

xxx

Misaki sat at her desk staring off into space while sipping a cup of tea. Images of BK-201 fighting VI-952 before her flashed through her mind. He was right in front of her, wearing his long black coat with his white mask, and all she had to do was pull the trigger. Why did she hesitate? Was it because he saved her, or was it something else? It must have been luck since there was no way a contractor would contemplate on saving a life, especially the fearsome Black Reaper.

"Kirihara, what are you sleeping?" yelled captain Horai.

Misaki jumped and knocked over her tea, staining her paperwork. She looked over at her boss's office to see he was standing in the doorway glaring at her furiously.

"Sir?" she surprisingly babbled.

"This is the third time I've tried calling you," he lectured her, but then his expression softened. "Please, come in here!"

Misaki blinked at him dumbfounded.

What now, she thought.

She shrugged it off, picked up a napkin, and tabbed at the mess to soak it up.

He had already yelled at her incompetence concerning BK-201's escape at the Wang Shaotang's Hotel. He didn't believe that he had disappeared out the window from the top floor, saying that it was impossible, and guessed she had used it as an excuse so she wouldn't have to jump out after him.

"Kirihara, for the last time, hurry up!" he yelled again, while the rest of the office just stopped what they were doing to stare at him.

"Coming, sir!" She threw the soaked napkin in the trash and walked over to his office. "What is it, sir?"

"A robbery was just reported earlier from a restaurant in the Shinjuku area. One of the employees called it in."

"A robbery, sir?" questioned Misaki "Shouldn't that be left to the local police?"

"Don't question my judgment of a case, Kirihara. Here's the address, now get on it."

Horai held out the paper in which Misaki took it and started to leave.

"Oh, and Kirihara," blabbered Horai, his eyes narrowed at her. "I hope you'll be able to handle this one. Once you find out who's behind it, don't let him or her disappear this time."

"I'll do my best, sir," replied Misaki, and then turned on her heels.

As she exited the office, she could hear her commander pick up his phone, dial a number, and said into it, "It's me…."

Irritated by his comment, Misaki frowned and left his office slamming the door, causing everyone in the room to drop what they were working on again and look in her direction. Misaki looked over at Saitou to see he was staring at her with half of a bean bun sticking out from his mouth.

"Saitou, let's go!" she called out.

Saitou snatched up the rest of the bean bun from his desk while grabbing his coat, and walked over to meet Misaki at the elevator.

"Where are we going, Chief?" he asked.

"Shinjuku," she informed. "My car is in the shop, we'll have to take yours."

"Ah, about that chief, mine wouldn't start this morning. I had to take the bus in."

Misaki sighed and then said, "We'll just have to take the JR Line then."

"JR in Shinjuku?" Saitou's eyelids slanted. "Chief, it gets too crowded. Let's take the bus."

"No, the JR will be faster."

xxx

The train was packed like Saitou had sad. Misaki and Saitou were standing inside with people cluttered up against each other to where a fly couldn't even hover between them.

Misaki was standing next to an odorous man in his late forties. She tried to hold her hand over her nose from the foul stench, but couldn't maneuver her arm up due to the airtight space.

When the train arrived at Harajuku station, Misaki was relieved when the man exited the train. However, a short man in his twenties, who reeked of cigarettes, stepped on, and was shoved up against her. She took a deep breath, hoping to hold it until her stop.

"The next stop is, Shinjuku," Misaki heard over the PA.

"Saitou, this is our stop coming up," Misaki yelled back over her shoulder, losing some of her air.

"Al right", he replied.

The two detectives tried to work their way to the door, but they were unsuccessful. Misaki hoped that all these people would be getting off at this stop.

The train came to a halt, and as the doors opened, half of the occupants departed the train, which made it easier for them to reach the exit.

As Misaki stepped from the train, she let out a huge gasp of air, while holding her hands on her knees. She frowned from a terrible aroma and took a whiff of her clothes.

"Are you alright, Chief?" Saitou asked concerned.

"Damn, now my clothes smell like cigarettes."

"See, I told you we should have taking the bus."

Misaki just glared up at him with a hint of anger in her eyes. "Let's go!"

They walked two and a half kilometers away from Shinjuku station, and down the crowded streets of Kabukicho. After passing by many restaurants, bars, pachinko parlors, and a wide variety of red light establishments, they arrived at their destination.

Misaki walked in the door to the smell of greasy food.

Oh, this is just great, I haven't eaten anything yet, and I have to work with this delicious smell messing with my hunger! she thought to herself. I am going to have a tough time doing my job now.

It was a small, clean restaurant, with a bar to the right and a total of ten tables. There were only three tables occupied and two people at the bar, with a few staff managing all of them.

"Table for two?" a young waitress with long black hair and red highlights asked.

Misaki wanted to say yes, but she instead held up her badge, and said, "We are here to see the owner or manager, please."

"Oh, sure. Right this way, detectives. The owner is waiting for you two."

She took them through the tiny restaurant and down a small thin hallway. Stopping at the last door, they waited as the waitress knocked on it.

"Who's there?" a voice replied timorously.

"Boss, some detectives are here to see you."

"Oh, really. Please, let them in."

The waitress opened the door and ushered Misaki and Saitou in. A middle-aged short man with black hair that was parted to the right to cover a bald spot stood from behind a wooden desk.

"I didn't think they were going to send anyone," he commented, taking off his glasses to wipe them with his shirt.

"What happened here, mister?" inquired Misaki, feeling ridicules of doing the local police's job.

The short man refitted his glasses on his nose and looked back at the detectives saying, "My safe was broken into."

"Where is the safe?" asked Saitou, looking around.

"It's over here."

He walked over to a ludicrous portrait of himself that said at the bottom, "Store Owner," and pulled it off the wall as Saitou made a small cough-like laugh. Frowning, Misaki's eyes glanced sideways at him as she stepped on his right foot, causing Saitou to scream out in pain and hop on his left foot.

The owner looked back at them, noticing Saitou's little dance, and asked, "Are you all right?"

"Haaiii!" he whined. "Please don't worry about me."

The owner shrugged his shoulders, and then turned his attention to his portrait to remove it and reveal a small safe. Misaki peered at it and noticed the dial had been cut clean from it in a circular pattern with no burn marks from a cutting torch, nor were there any edge marks indicating the thief might have used a saw.

"What could have caused this?" inquired Misaki, interested in the case and then thought to herself, a contractor?

"I don't know, detective. That's why you are here," he responded sarcastically, as he opened the safe.

Misaki looked in it to see it was still full of money and papers stacked neatly. She turned her head to face the owner and asked confused, "What exactly did they take?"

"That's none of your business. I just need you to find out who broke into it. You're welcome to look around for clues," he finished, while he snatched up a briefcase. The owner grabbed his hat and coat off the rack and threw them on, as he looked back at the detectives. "I'll be leaving, so please ask the manager for anything if you need help."

He turned on his heels and walked out the door.

"Man, how does he expect us to help if he won't let us know what was taking?" Misaki sighed to Saitou irritated. Especially on an empty stomach! she thought to herself.

"What do you think might have happened here, Chief?" asked Saitou.

"What do I think? Saitou, you should have already figured out this whole thing screams out contractor."

"Contractor?" muttered Saitou surprised.

Misaki sighed at him. He was a loyal officer, but he was so dense sometimes she wondered how he had become a detective in the Foreign Affairs. She pushed that thought aside and pulled out her phone to dial a number.

"Moshi, Moshi?" a voice replied on the other end.

"Kanami, its Kirihara. Can you tell me if there was any contractor activity in the Shinjuku area last night?"

"In Shinjuku? Hold on." Misaki could hear typing in the background as she waited. "Yes, messier code LM-105. He's a contractor that works for MI-6, code name October."

"MI-6? Arigatou, Kanami."

"Wait a second, Misaki. I have something else here. I don't know if this is related, but BK-201 was active yesterday morning too in that area."

"BK-201?"

"Hai, but just for a few seconds."

Misaki stood in silence thinking.

"Misaki, you still there?" Kanami's voice asked from the phone.

"Ah, yes. Thank you, Kanami."

"You're welcome."

A click sounded in Misaki's ear to let her know Ishizaki had hung up.

"BK-201 and MI-6. What's going on?" Misaki asked softly to herself. "Maybe November Eleven knows something."

Misaki and Saitou roamed around for another fifteen minutes, found nothing suspicious, and blamed her lack of progress due to hunger.

"Let's get out of here, Saitou," Misaki said.

"Hai," agreed Saitou.

They walked down through the thin hallway back to the restaurant. As they got to the end, Misaki accidentally bumped into one of the staff members walking by in a light blue button down collar shirt, black pants, and black apron, knocking him down and making him drop and break a stack of dishes he was carrying, as Misaki landed on her bum. The restaurant went quiet as the few people and workers looked to see what had caused the racket.

Misaki looked over at the waiter and apologized, "Oh, I'm so sorry. Are you…?" Her eyes widened while her mouth dropped open, recognizing the person before her.

"I'm fine," he replied, looking up at her. "Although my…" He stared at her flabbergasted.

"Ki—Kirihara-san?" he replied puzzled.

"Li… kun?" muttered Misaki surprised.

Darker than Black

"Li-kun?" spoke up Saitou surprised.

Li glanced over at him and said confused, "Saitou-san? What are you two doing here?"

"We're investigating a robbery.

"Really," replied Li, as he stood and helped Misaki up.

She stared into his eyes, losing her composure before him, and fought to ask, "Wha—what are you doing here?"

"I work here," Li answered.

"Are you a waiter again?"

"No, I'm a bus boy."

"A bus boy this time, Li?" questioned Saitou.

Misaki's eyes closed while she blushed and giggled, "You pick some lousy jobs. Maybe you should look into police work since you're quick on your feet."

Li chuckled and scratched the back of his head. A loud growling noise suddenly rumbled from his stomach, which made him frown. Misaki stared at him lost for words and then burst into laughter.

"I guess we're both hungry," she laughed.

He blushed and started to chuckle.

"Hai, I got into trouble earlier for breaking some dishes, so my boss wouldn't let me go to lunch," informed Li. "I still have four hours before I'm off."

Misaki continued to laugh, but stopped as her stomach let out a loud growl too. They both looked at each other for a few seconds, but then burst out into laughter again.

"Maybe I should get something to eat," giggled Misaki.

"Now that you said it, Chief, I'm hungry too," spoke up Saitou. "Is the food here any good, Li?"

"No, but there is a good ramen restaurant a few blocks down. I was planning on going…"

"You again!" yelled a tall thin man in his thirties, cutting off Li. "Clean this up right away! Well, hurry up! Go get a broom and dust pan! Move it, move it!"

Li smiled back at Misaki, and whispered, "Sorry, I have to get back to work."

He walked off into the back and disappeared around the corner.

"Sorry about that, miss," the manager apologized, guideding Misaki and Saitou away from the mess. "That kid is always goofing off. Are you two hurt at all?"

"No, we're fine," assured Misaki.

"I'll make sure he is reprimanded for this."

"But I was the one who…."

"You can have a free meal on us. Here's a gift card."

The manager handed Misaki the card, which made Saitou's eyes sparkle with delight.

"Ah, domo," muttered Misaki, not wanting to give this man her service for the way he was treating Li.

Li returned with a broom and dust pan, and started cleaning up the mess. The manager walked over to him and began screaming at Li for his incompetence. Li just smiled and nodded while sweeping up the mess she had caused. Misaki felt a guilty conscious surface in the pit of her stomach and made a note to repay him back.

"Come on, Saitou," she said. "Let's get something to eat."

Confusing him as to why she was leaving, Misaki gestured Saitou to follow her out of the restaurant and down the streets until they reached a ramen restaurant. They sat down to a delicious smell, which caused Misaki's stomach to growl again.

"Why did you decide to eat here when we could have had a free meal, Chief?" Saitou questioned.

"I wanted to try this place after Li had mentioned it, and it smells so good."

"Hai, I agree, Chief."

A young girl with black hair pulled back into two braids approached them. "May I take your order?"

"One bowl of ramen noodles please," replied Saitou.

"I'll take two," said Misaki.

The young girl nodded and headed to the back room where a huge man was cooking the meals. She gave the order to him, and then took an order of five bowls to a couple and their kids across the room.

xxx

The middle aged bald owner sprinted down the streets with his briefcase still in hand, looking behind him every few seconds while bumping into people and irritating them. Turning down an alleyway, he came to a frightening halt, as he stared at a man with black medium length hair in a blue suit with orange stripes before him.

"L…R…9…2…4?" he said stuttering.

"Hello, Red," the man smiled. "You're not planning on running away, are you?"

"No, I'm j… just on my way ho… home"

"Really," he chuckled. "You lost the stone and reported it to the police. The Syndicate is not happy about that. If I were you I would start running."

"But, it's not my fault! A contractor came in, knocked me out, and stole it. Check the Stars. I'm innocent."

"You don't take me for an idiot do you?" the contractor said, as he snatched his briefcase, opened it, and flung it in the air as stacks of money came pouring out of it. "Who did you sell the information to that we were hiding it in the restaurant's safe?"

"I can't say, or they'll kill me."

"You'll die right here anyways. You might as well tell me so you can live a little longer." LR-924 smiled, pulling out a playing card from his right pocket.

"Okay," he muttered in English, and then said in his native tongue, "it was MI-6. I'm supposed to meet up with them in front of the McDoness Burger nearby in a half an hour for the rest of my payment. You can get it back there after I get paid. I'll even split the money with you."

"Good boy, Red. Now you can pay for your incompetence." He lifted his right hand up, as his eyes glowed red and his body outlined in blue. "Die!"

"What?"

The restaurant owner turned and started to run back the other way, but stopped and stared into space, as he fell forward dead on the ground with the Ace of Hearts card sticking out of his back. The contractor grabbed Red's hat and coat, and headed towards the rendezvous point.

xxx

Misaki sat back in her seat, crossing her arms while closing her eyes, and thought about what might have been stolen from the safe. She had no doubt that a contractor was behind it, and knew MI-6 was involved. But why, and was this somehow related to BK-201? Did the safe hold something that might be connected to contractors, or was it some bogus thing that did nothing? For all Misaki knew it could have been a collector's baseball card.

"You all right there, Chief?" asked Saitou.

"Ah, I'm fine, Saitou," replied Misaki, opening her eyes and telling him what was on her mind.

"It could be a clue to where BK-201 is hiding?"

"I don't think a contractor like BK201 would leave such information behind in a safe. He's too cunning for that."

xxx

Hei had finished cleaning up the mess he had caused and was about to dump it in the trash when suddenly he sneezed, causing him to fling the dust pan and scatter all the broken dishes along the floor.

"LI SHENGSHUN!" shouted his Manager. "WHY DID I EVEN HIRE YOU TO BEGIN WITH?"

Hei embarrassedly smiled and cleaned up the mess he caused a second time. Today was not his lucky day.

xxx

After waiting only five minutes for their food, the young girl returned to their table with two bowls of ramen. Misaki took a hold of her chopsticks and began eating her lunch.

"Delicious!" she praised.

Misaki ended up ordering two more bowls and had them devoured in less then fifteen minutes.

"So delicious," she commented. "No wonder Li-kun comes here."

"Hai," Saitou agreed.

"Oi, waitress," Misaki called out, "may I get another bowl, please?"

The young girl stopped in shock and dropped a couple of bowls on the floor. "Are you related to a man named Li at all?" she questioned.

Misaki blushed at the mention of being related to Li, and waved her hands in front of her saying, "No, no, but I do know him. He told us about this place, and well, we…."

"Rika!" yelled the huge man. "What are you doing, those bowls aren't cheap. Get the broom and clean that mess up right now!"

"Hai, Father," said the girl named Rika.

She hurried into the back and returned moments later with a broom and pan in her hands to clean up the mess, making Misaki feel like she was experiencing déjà vu.

"I think it's time to go," Saitou commented. "Let's get back to the station."

"But, I just ordered another bowl."

"Waitress, could we just get the check, please?" Saitou asked Rika, before she could dispose of her mess.

"Hai, I'll be right back."

Misaki just sat and sighed, "Well, I guess I can save it for later."

About ten minutes later Misaki and Saitou walked out of the ramen restaurant.

"Which way is back to the station?" Saitou asked, carrying Misaki's fourth order of noodles.

"This way, baka," she instructed, starting to walk back to Shinjuku Station.

To be continued in next Chapter.

xxx

A.N: I hope you liked it. Please let me know of any corrections, especially the Japanese spellings, and I well correct them. I've included a little Japanese dialog to help set the mood because the story does take place in Japan.

Thank you for reading. :)

Japanese Translations:

Nani – What

Domo – Thanks

Arigatou - Thank you

Moshi, Moshi – Hello

Otosan - Father

Baka – Idiot