🎩 closed.

[mantiger]

[ As a phantom thief - although sometimes, his mentor Dazai-san would jokingly call him a 'cat burglar' because of his white tiger motif - there was only one thing to do once he laid his eyes on a target and made the decision to go for it.

And that was to write the calling card.

Which is why the moment that Atsushi enters the offices for the Armed Detective Agency, he'll find that a card that wasn't there the day before sitting right atop his desk.

On it is written, in clearly printed text to avoid anyone detecting who exactly this was: ]

To the detective, Nakajima Atsushi-kun:

On this very night before the clock strikes twelve midnight, I shall infiltrate your lovely abode and take possession of you for myself. There's no use trying to stop me.

🐾 The Moonlight Thief.

[ How unusual!

Of course, it's easy to completely misconstrue this, given how it's worded. But then again, maybe that was the point to begin with. ]

Comments

[scarsnstripes]

[Honestly, at this point in his life Atsushi was no stranger to attempted kidnappings (thanks, Fitzgerald). This was however an entirely new kind of kidnapping attempt, guised mockingly as a 'theft' by one of the thieves the agency had been tapped to investigate.

Atsushi could really only think this was some sort of ploy to get them to drop the investigation, when he first saw the calling card placed neatly atop his desk. There'd been some laughs about it in the office at the phrasing, but ultimately it was decided Atsushi would try to apprehend the thief when they arrived, and call for backup if needed.

So he's left wide awake in his apartment, still dressed in his day clothes and antsy while waiting for the thief's arrival. He refused to be caught off guard, this time.]

[mantiger]

[ There's a reason why he's called the Moonlight Thief; something that he'll soon find out soon enough the very moment he hears the clicking of the window getting unlocked. ] Ah, there you are. [ He's wearing his phantom thief garb, smiling with full confidence. ] I hope you're ready to get whisked away, Atsushi. [ No honorific, unlike how he referred to him in the calling card. ]

[scarsnstripes]

[Atsushi stiffens at the click of the window lock, having been facing the door this entire time, so a window entrance is a surprise. Of course, the thieves were known for being dramatic, so he probably should have accounted for this.]

It's not going to be that easy, Moonlight Thief--

[...What Atsushi didn't know was how they looked up close. When he turns around, he's caught speechless for a long moment, gaping at the man's mostly uncovered face. The mask hid very little, and...]

But... you look like...

[mantiger]

I do like a challenge.

[ As a phantom thief, he was always told to make things rather dramatic -- after all, you can't call yourself one if you didn't have the flair for theatrics. But when he's caught, he can't help but smile in that familiar, almost pitiful manner. ]

Aha. . . it's a surprise, isn't it? I was pretty shocked to find out there was another 'me' here, too. Don't worry, though. I don't plan on hurting you.