[Log] Shin, Shuuhei
Title: An Offer He Can't Refuse
Characters: Shin (some_scribbles) , Shuuhei (calm_isolation)
Timeline: October 7, 1948
Rating: G
Summary: Shin offers Shuuhei the chance of a lifetime...Going undercover in the mob...
It had become a pattern, a pattern as inescapable as the meeting he was waiting for. First Shuuhei checked the time on his battered wristwatch, 3:45pm, then he ran his thumbs along the length of his suspenders snapping them against his chest, four times, a pointed look across the cavernous room to “The Lucky Top”, was next, during which he searched for a face he didn’t know if he would recognize. Finally he would once again check his watch, 3:46pm. The actions appeared to be, if not thought out, deliberate but Shuuhei had slipped into his pattern more then ten minutes ago, and he was no longer doing it on purpose, his body was on auto-pilot while his mind ran over the last eight months of his life.
He would never forgot that evening when he walked into the locker room after his shift, to change. He was talking to some other men, just friendly banter, how stupid he felt even now when he remembered it was talk about a big drug bust, a huge drug bust. Those men were congratulating him, and when he opened his locker, bags and bags of powder fell out to land with loud plops on the cement ground, some busting open to dust his shoes. Those men all looked at him with huge accusing eyes. Shuuhei snapped his suspenders harder this time, making himself flinch in his anger. It could have been anyone who planted that shit in his locker. Anyone, even one of those men, probably one of those men, why else would they be talking about the very drugs found in Shuuhei’s locker.
In that instant all of his faith in his job, all his pride in his work, vanished. Shuuhei Hisagi knew from the moment his polished black shoes turned gray under the powder of that planted evidence that he no longer wanted to be a cop. The bad guys were not always the ones out there, a growing number of them stood beside Shuuhei, in uniforms hiding behind a shield, and the brunet was through with standing beside those dirty cops. It was time he stood against them.
Shuuhei stayed through the Internal Affairs investigation. He fought, and eventually proved his innocence. He was planning on turning in his notice soon, getting out of this cesspool of dirty cops, when he found a sealed note on his desk. A note to meet Seijuro Shin, head of the Special Assignments Unit, at “The Lucky Top” in, 3:51pm, nine minutes.
The cop snapped his suspenders, five times, and decided he had waited long enough, he was going in. The walk across Grand Central Station's polished floors to the restaurant seemed to take an hour, but at the same time only take a moment. Shuuhei walked in and scanned the people, his eyes lighting on a figure with a briefcase. That must be him. Squaring his shoulders Hisagi approached the stranger; he had only heard whispers of.
Seijuro Shin had arrived at the meeting place a half hour before his appointment was scheduled to take place. He secured the perimeter as much as was possible in such a busy and public area, memorized the names and faces of the staff, and sat down to wait and watch. His coffee sat untouched in front of him, and would remain so until 4:50. With one hand he held a folded newspaper which to any casual observer it appeared that he was completely absorbed in.
The newly appointed head of Special Investigations was still ‘wet behind the ears’ when it came to being in charge of his own department. The rapid promotion had felt more like a punishment, at first, when he saw that his predecessor hadn’t even bothered to clear all the paperwork off his desk. But Shin had settled in and was starting to reorder the department to his liking.
Police work, by its very nature, was a matter of defense and clean-up, something Shin was well familiar with. But war had taught him that not even the best defense could make up for a single offensive play which met with success. SI provided him with that opportunity to actively hunt down and remove known criminals within the bounds of the law, and Shin had set his sights high. Within the small, elite unit he was forming, there had been several successful short term assignments already completed, but he needed to bring in some fresh faces if he wanted to go after the big fish.
Shuuhei Hisagi was a perfect candidate for the kind of long term assignment he had in mind. He had trained up some good cops, every one going on to perform well. His stubborn refusal to get dirty had recently been met with appreciation in the finest form crooked cops could offer. IA had eventually cleared him, but it would be expected of a man of Hisagi’s character to remain throughout the investigation, clear his name, and shake the dirt off his feet. It was practically a ready-made cover.
And the best part, he thought was he watched Hisagi approach “The Lucky Top” out of the corner of his eye, was that the bird didn’t look like a cop. Those scars, that tattoo, the brawler’s walk-give him a week and the toughs would forget he hadn’t been one of them the whole time.
He didn’t visibly react when he saw Hisagi make him. Instead he settled back to wait and see what lieutenant would do. After all, knowing someone by reputation and information gathering was one thing, seeing someone with your own eyes was something else.
Shuuhei settled in the chair across from Shin without a word studying the other man. This was defiantly who he was supposed to meet, he had that sharpness in his eyes you only got from constantly being on guard, it was a look Shuuhei saw in the mirror every morning.
A waitress hovered at the cop’s elbow, Shuuhei ordered a coffee and slice of blackberry pie without looking at her, and the moment she walked away, he held a hand out to Shin. “I don’t think I need to introduce myself, but my mom would never forgive my lack of manners if I didn’t. Shuuhei Hisagi, and I’m assuming you are Captain Shin?”
Shin watched the way that Hisagi interacted with the waitress, and noted that there was room for improvement there. And undercover operative always had to know exactly who he or she was dealing with at all times. If Hisagi accepted the assignment, they’d have time to go over the basics and not much more than that in the way of training. He’d have to trust to the other man’s intelligence and ingenuity in order to keep himself alive, and Shin would not even make the offer if he wasn’t convinced the lieutenant had what it takes.
“Head Detective Seijuro Shin,” he said, moving to shake the other man’s hand in a firm grip. “I’ve heard a lot about you, Lt. Hisagi.”
Shin didn’t like to play games. But long experience had taught him it was often best to see what information a person would offer up about themselves before getting straight down to business as he would prefer. He wasn’t out to make the Lieutenant uncomfortable. But he was curious to see how the man would react to such a vague reference to his recent troubles.
Being called Lieutenant, when he had not introduced himself as such, was like a small jab in his side. A reminder that Shuuhei he was one of ‘them’. Not only one of ‘them’ but in the company of a superior officer. This meeting may be off the clock, and they may be in a place public enough to make it secret, but they had nothing in common except their work. The Lieutenant just hoped they both worked on the same side and this was not a proposition for something illegal. He didn’t know what he would do if it was, he had heard good things about Shin, good things from people he trusted, and he didn’t trust many people anymore. As much as he hated too, Shuuhei had prepared himself to be disappointed in Shin. But, no matter how much he tried the brunet couldn’t squash down his hope that this meeting would bring his next turn in the road.
It was that flickering fire inside him that made him smile. The smile was crooked from the scars that trailed over one cheek, but still genuine and it touched gray eyes warming them. “I am sure you have heard a lot about me, I have heard a lot about you too. The question is who we hear what from and what we believe.”
The waitress returned with his coffee and pie, Shuuhei turned his smile to her briefly in thanks, before taking a healthy bite. “I for instance, don’t honestly believe that you are a government spy from Belgium…. You aren’t are you?” This last was said around another bite of pie, with another smile to show he was only half joking.
Seijuro leaned back against his chair and picked up his cup of coffee, listening as Hisagi spoke. It was a deliberate move to make the other man more comfortable, to see how easily he picked up on other people’s body language and how he adjusted his own in response.
It was a good point, ‘who we hear and what we believe.’ Seijuro would be staking a lot on what he’d heard… and if he took him up on his offer, Hisagi would too. And if this was going to work, the two of them would have to trust each other. All right. No more games. He hated this kind of playing anyway.
Shin preferred to see what the other man was made of with his own eyes. But the nature of the assignment he hoped to have Hisagi fill was… delicate. He couldn’t be seen spending too much time with a candidate, the Concavos had too many eyes and ears in the department. He’d have to trust his gut. His initial assessment was of a man who was capable and willing to take risks, but he needed to know more than that.
“I am not,” Seijuro responded, taking a sip of his coffee. “Although I was unaware that the rumors had moved to Belgium.” Russia, he’d heard. Along with Turkey and Italy. Time to add one more to the list. It seemed like people never got tired of flapping their yaps around the breakroom. ‘Belgium.’ Bah.
“You are here, so I assume that you received my note. Tell me, what were your thoughts about my offer?”
Shuuhei was a nervous eater, the taste of pie always reminded him of his mom, and that brought feelings of safety, love, and home. A home Shuuhei remembered only with the taste of butter crust in the back of his throat. It was a shock that the cop had not put on a hundred pounds through the investigation, with all the pie he ate. It was also a shock, how bad the urge to lick the empty plate in front of him was. An urge he mashed down, relaxing in the chair across from Shin mimicking his pose effortlessly, though his coffee remained untouched.
What did Shuuhei think of the offer to transfer to Special Assignments? That question had haunted Shuuhei nightly since he received that note. Long after the brunt had burned the paper, that offer had continued to chase its tail in his mind. Presumably, changing to Shin’s department would include some kind of undercover work; probably Hisagi would spend the rest of his career propositioning hookers. It was an idea that curdled his stomach. It was an idea that made Shuuhei no longer want to lick his plate, and almost regret that pie, almost.
“No offense, Captain Shin, but I don’t think I am interested in staying at the clubhouse any more. It’s a club I am no longer willing to pay the fees for. I am sure you understand, especially having heard so much about me.”
Shin set his coffee back down on its saucer. It was much as he would have expected. Shuuhei Hisagi had been in the Force for four years, rapidly promoted, and according to the his record had kept his nose clean and stuck to what he knew was right-stuck to what he knew was right just once too often. Hisagi had earned his position. The scars on his face, the way that he held himself, the assessing look in those dark eyes-everything about this man indicated that he was a fighter.
Shin had done his homework. He’d delved as far back into Shuuhei Hisagi’s background as he could find, and he was more than a little impressed that the young man had come so far on his own. But his hard work had been repaid by betrayal from those he should have been able to trust, and Shin could not blame Hisagi if he wanted to walk.
He was curious, however. Hisagi had only gotten as far as he had because he had some sort of goal, something to drive him further. Was he really willing to abandon that completely, or could he be tempted to stick it out for one more assignment?
“IA dismissed all charges. You fought to clear your name. And now you’re leaving?” Shin leaned back against his chair and waited for Hisagi’s answer.
Long fingers musseled his already wild hair, as Shuuhei thought how to respond. They both knew, he hoped, that he proved his innocence and not just escaped the charges. The brunet had a feeling that anyone in his position would leave; get out before the scum on the force figured out how to throw something stickier at him. But the truth was, he had nowhere else to go. He felt like he was spinning his wheels, a misguided stint in University, a few years at the NYPD, he was getting too old to keep running around. If he hadn’t been framed, Shuuhei would have stayed. He would have fought against the dirty cops until he was old and gray, and left satisfied with his life.
The driving force behind Shuuhei was his desire, his burning need, and his promise to protect everyone he could. Didn’t that include protecting himself? No, but it did include making sure he was able to do his job, and that had been compromised. He was lucky this time, but he wouldn’t be so lucky next time around. What good would Shuuhei be if the men he put there killed him in jail?
His hand ran down his face, his fingers touched the smoothness of his tattooed cheek, and he looked at Shin, really looked at him. This game of back and forth, these veiled questions, this offer to transfer. He still had that hope burning inside him that this was his answer; this might be his way to stay on the force, and help people. He just had to decide if he trusted the man in front of him to have his back. He would have to let this stranger in, but how could he ask that without appearing weak.
“I didn’t take that evidence. I hope that you believe that, from me and not because IA told you. I didn’t take it, and I was lucky enough to prove it this time. But I will be more than useless if it happens again, and I am not so lucky. And it will happen again if I stay in my department.” Gray eyes study Shin, while he unconsciously traces one of the scars running down his face. “If I changed departments, Captain Shin, who I be less likely to be framed again?”
“I believe you, Lieutenant. I wouldn’t have asked you here if I hadn’t been satisfied with your character.” He exhaled a soft ‘heh.’ “And as for whether or not you’d be less likely to be framed…”
Shin leaned forward, placing his forearms on the edge of the table and locking his gaze with Hisagi’s. “You are certainly aware that corruption has leaked into every area of law enforcement. Protecting the public has never been easy; to serve and protect among the NYPD is just a hell of a lot harder than it is anywhere else. The mafia has too many inside men, too much power and far too firm a grip on this city. It makes it hard to know who to trust, makes it hard to stand firm when the man next to you could be tearing down everything that you’re working to build up. You did that, Hisagi. I understand that you’re a man of honor. That is why I am going to ask you to lie.”
Shin paused, letting his words hang in the air between them. "I am going to ask you to lie to everyone you care about. I am going to ask you to betray people you don't know yet, but people who you will come to enjoy and respect. I am going to ask you, Shuuhei Hisagi, to go under deep cover."
Tension he didn’t even realize he was holding eased from between his shoulder blades as Shuuhei listened to those words he needed so badly to hear. A soft sigh escaped his lips before he could stop it. So Shin did believe that he was innocent, and not only that, but Shin saw potential in him, enough potential to ask him to go ‘deep’ under cover.
A slow smile spread across his face. While the smile lit his eyes, his gaze remained serious. He wanted to show Shin that he deserved that trust, and that he would prove himself worthy. But as much as this seemed like the opportunity Hisagi had been waiting for, there were still questions he needed answered. As he tried to organize his thoughts, forming complete and well thought out questions, his mouth opened and those questions tumbled out fragmented and natural.
“Deep Cover? Doing What? For how long?”
It appeared that Hisagi was eager. Good. That meant the man hadn’t lost all faith in what it was they were trying to do. And at the same time… it meant he had no idea what Shin was about to ask of him. Would he be able to handle it?
Shin straightened up, moving to cradle the cup of coffee in his large hands. He stared down and the dark liquid, frowning slightly. “If you were to work for me…”
He lifted his eyes to meet Hisagi’s gaze. “If you were to work for me you’d have to be smart. You’d have to learn to pick up on the nuances of everyone around you. You’d have to be willing to do whatever it takes to preserve your cover, even if it goes against your gut, even if it goes against your integrity. The most important thing would be this and only this: getting the information, and getting out alive.
“If you were to work for me, you’d report only to me, and possibly to another contact I would give you. If, in the event something happened to me, or you could not get in touch with me, you would go directly to the commissioner. You could trust no one, not even your closest friends, with what you are really doing, for their safety as much as for your own.
“You’d be put in a situation where the only thing you have to hang onto is the mission, one where in order to be successful you will have to empathize with the very men you are going to turn in. The only thing you’d have to hold onto is that you are doing what is necessary for the protection of innocents. Because where the Concavos are concerned… no one in this city is safe until they are taken down.”
Shin set the coffee, untouched, back in its saucer and leaned back in his chair. His eyes never left the man in front of him, cataloguing every nuance of his expression, of his body language. Hisagi’s reaction to the information of exactly where Shin wanted to place him would be telling.
Shuuhei’s eyes were locked on Shin’s face as he described the complexities of the job he was offering. His lips formed and soundlessly repeated ‘getting the information, and getting out alive’. This was sounding more and more like exactly what Hisagi wanted, no, needed to do. He became a cop because he wanted to make a difference. For four years, he had trained rookies and sent them on the right path in the force. It was a small difference, Shuuhei had decided it was enough, but he had always known he could do so much more. He wanted, and was willing to put everything on the line for his job, and here was his chance.
At the off-hand, though well placed, mention of the Concavo family, the tattooed man had been unable to stop a robust laugh from echoing around them. This was exactly what Shuuhei wanted to do. It all seemed too perfect, looking at it here with this man. The Concavo’s most likely had men inside the NYPD, so it was only fair to have some of their own in the mob. Shuuhei loved this idea; he was shocked it had been offered to him, but also inexpressively proud and grateful for this chance. He had few friends, so the move from cop to thug would be easy. There would only be a few people who he would miss, a few friends who had become his family, but he would do anything to protect them.
“What do I need to do? How soon can you get me in?”
Shin’s eyes narrowed. Very eager. His investigation into Shuuhei Hisagi’s background had revealed that the man was an orphan, no living family, and therefore an ideal candidate to send deep into the underbelly of organized crime. But all the same… Shin was asking him to risk his reputation, his friendships, even his life.
“Before I tell you any more, first you need to tell me just why you want this assignment. You do understand that if you take this position, you will be completely on your own, living like a criminal. If you are in any way successful, it will get inside your head until the one thing that you thought you were sure of, your own honor, will be called into question. Your friends will think you’ve abandoned them. Why are you willing to do this? What makes you think you will succeed?”
It was Shuuhei’s turn to fiddle with his coffee cup, picking it up to stare into the inky depths. He was a man of few words, he never explained himself. In the orphanage no one listened or cared what he had to say. His clipped direct nature suited his job in the NYPD and he had seen no reason to change. So when he was asked to explain himself it took him a moment to collect his thoughts and trim them down to a manageable length.
Gray eyes lift from the caffeine darkness to look again at the man across from him. A sip of cooling coffee caresses his tongue on the way down and he nods, setting the cup down, ready to talk.
“I am sure you know plenty about me. You know that I have no family; you know that I keep to myself at work, so I have little tying me to this life. You know that I have a perfect alibi for appearing to leave. You know that I am clean. You know that I am strong. Criminals trying to get in my head? Nothing will have changed from the dirty cops who try to sway me everyday at work. My honor has already been called into question, this is a chance to regain it.”
Another deeper swallow of coffee, “It will be hard to leave the few friends I have. It will be hard, but necessary for their safety, and I would do anything to keep them safe. This assignment is exactly why I joined the NYPD. I know I can do this. Look at me. I don’t look like I belong behind a shield. I know that. I was built for this job. I have nothing to loose and everything to gain.”
A crooked smile touches his eyes, “And what an interesting twist of fate that the mobs cops come at me and then I am offered a chance to go at the mob?”
Shin listened carefully, weighing every word, every inflection, every expression in the balance. It became clear to him that Hisagi wanted, almost needed this chance. He was being driven onward from some motivation that was more than a simple desire to prove himself or get in on an interesting assignment. Hisagi honestly believed he could do this, that he would be perfectly suited for it, and in a way, he was.
Maybe. Hisgai was also painfully naïve. It was one thing to be tempted to cut a dirty deal at work, and yes, keeping his nose clean this long said something, but it was something else to be forced daily to stand by, to help, as the men you ate and drank with murdered and brutalized their way through the city. It was something else to force yourself to do those same things, just for the sake of maintaining your cover, telling yourself that it had to be this way.
Shin knew that what he was asking Hisagi to do would, at some point, break the young man in front of him. If he would be able to put the pieces together, and rise up stronger with the strength of his convictions burning within him and leading him on the way… that remained to be seen. But Shin also saw enough strength, enough desire, that he was willing to give the man a chance to stand or fall on his own.
Besides. As much as he hated to use anyone, Shin needed this too. It wasn’t good enough to just clean up after the wreckage organized crime left on the streets. It was time to act aggressively, time to position the mafia for a fall.
“Very well,” he said, relaxing his shoulders ever-so-slightly. “I’ll offer you the job. Your cover will be arranged for you. Do not contact me, I will contact you. You will follow my instructions precisely.”
Shin leaned forward, once again resting his forearms on the edge of the table. “This will be a long term assignment, Hisagi. Just establishing your cover could take up to half a year. Working your way through the ranks so that you can actually discover useful information will take longer. I know that you’ve said you want it. The offer is there, and it stands. But I do not want to accept your answer immediately. You have one week to think about it. If your answer is still yes, meet me here at the same time.”
Shin shifted his gaze away from Hisagi’s onto the briefcase on the table. “And take that with you when you go. It has more details about what will be expected of you. Burn them when you’re done.” He leaned back in his chair once again. “Any questions?”
Hisagi followed Shin’s eyes to the forgotten briefcase, one hand reaching to touch it hesitantly. “I think I will save my questions until next week.” His eyes left the case then, to meet the others again. “I have a feeling this,” he tapped the smooth leather briefcase, “will answer a lot of my questions, or at least, replace them with new ones.”
Fair enough. Shin nodded at Hisagi and retrieved his overcoat. Shrugging it on as he stood, he reached for his crisp fedora and fit it onto his head. “Nice having lunch with you,” he spoke in a normal tone of voice, giving one last tug to the rim of his fedora before walking away without a backwards glance.
Shin was satisfied with the way his meeting had gone. If his reading of Hisagi was right, he would soon have the exact piece he needed for this complicated game. It would take some hands on preparation; Shin had no intention of letting Hisagi go under deep cover without learning at least the basics every undercover cop was taught. But Hisagi was motivated, all his records had indicated that he was a quick study, and Shin had had seen the intelligence and the desire in his eyes. If Hisagi had the guts to stick with it… then everything would work out just fine.
A drizzling rain had started to fall, further obscuring the dusky city streets. Shin paused at the entrance of Grand Central to flip up his collar and reach into his pocket to retrieve a cigarette. Flipping the lighter opened, Shin lit the gasper and took a deep breath of the intoxicating substance, allowing himself the indulgence in celebration of a job well done. Sliding the lighter back into his pocket, Shin took another drag, the flare of the cigarette casting his face in shadow when it hit the brim of his fedora. Sliding his hands in his pockets to ward of the chill, Shin walked away into the mist.
Shuuhei watched Shin walk away before he flagged the waitress. A week to ‘think things through’ a week he would need to read and memorize everything in the briefcase, not certainly a week he didn’t need to use deciding. He had made this decision long ago, when he entered the police academy. His palms itched to open that case and start reading now, but he knew he would wait until he was home; there was really just one more thing to do before he went home to pour of the information about his new assignment.
The short redheaded waitress smiled at him waiting for his order. “I think I would like another slice of pie please.”
Characters: Shin (some_scribbles) , Shuuhei (calm_isolation)
Timeline: October 7, 1948
Rating: G
Summary: Shin offers Shuuhei the chance of a lifetime...Going undercover in the mob...
It had become a pattern, a pattern as inescapable as the meeting he was waiting for. First Shuuhei checked the time on his battered wristwatch, 3:45pm, then he ran his thumbs along the length of his suspenders snapping them against his chest, four times, a pointed look across the cavernous room to “The Lucky Top”, was next, during which he searched for a face he didn’t know if he would recognize. Finally he would once again check his watch, 3:46pm. The actions appeared to be, if not thought out, deliberate but Shuuhei had slipped into his pattern more then ten minutes ago, and he was no longer doing it on purpose, his body was on auto-pilot while his mind ran over the last eight months of his life.
He would never forgot that evening when he walked into the locker room after his shift, to change. He was talking to some other men, just friendly banter, how stupid he felt even now when he remembered it was talk about a big drug bust, a huge drug bust. Those men were congratulating him, and when he opened his locker, bags and bags of powder fell out to land with loud plops on the cement ground, some busting open to dust his shoes. Those men all looked at him with huge accusing eyes. Shuuhei snapped his suspenders harder this time, making himself flinch in his anger. It could have been anyone who planted that shit in his locker. Anyone, even one of those men, probably one of those men, why else would they be talking about the very drugs found in Shuuhei’s locker.
In that instant all of his faith in his job, all his pride in his work, vanished. Shuuhei Hisagi knew from the moment his polished black shoes turned gray under the powder of that planted evidence that he no longer wanted to be a cop. The bad guys were not always the ones out there, a growing number of them stood beside Shuuhei, in uniforms hiding behind a shield, and the brunet was through with standing beside those dirty cops. It was time he stood against them.
Shuuhei stayed through the Internal Affairs investigation. He fought, and eventually proved his innocence. He was planning on turning in his notice soon, getting out of this cesspool of dirty cops, when he found a sealed note on his desk. A note to meet Seijuro Shin, head of the Special Assignments Unit, at “The Lucky Top” in, 3:51pm, nine minutes.
The cop snapped his suspenders, five times, and decided he had waited long enough, he was going in. The walk across Grand Central Station's polished floors to the restaurant seemed to take an hour, but at the same time only take a moment. Shuuhei walked in and scanned the people, his eyes lighting on a figure with a briefcase. That must be him. Squaring his shoulders Hisagi approached the stranger; he had only heard whispers of.
Seijuro Shin had arrived at the meeting place a half hour before his appointment was scheduled to take place. He secured the perimeter as much as was possible in such a busy and public area, memorized the names and faces of the staff, and sat down to wait and watch. His coffee sat untouched in front of him, and would remain so until 4:50. With one hand he held a folded newspaper which to any casual observer it appeared that he was completely absorbed in.
The newly appointed head of Special Investigations was still ‘wet behind the ears’ when it came to being in charge of his own department. The rapid promotion had felt more like a punishment, at first, when he saw that his predecessor hadn’t even bothered to clear all the paperwork off his desk. But Shin had settled in and was starting to reorder the department to his liking.
Police work, by its very nature, was a matter of defense and clean-up, something Shin was well familiar with. But war had taught him that not even the best defense could make up for a single offensive play which met with success. SI provided him with that opportunity to actively hunt down and remove known criminals within the bounds of the law, and Shin had set his sights high. Within the small, elite unit he was forming, there had been several successful short term assignments already completed, but he needed to bring in some fresh faces if he wanted to go after the big fish.
Shuuhei Hisagi was a perfect candidate for the kind of long term assignment he had in mind. He had trained up some good cops, every one going on to perform well. His stubborn refusal to get dirty had recently been met with appreciation in the finest form crooked cops could offer. IA had eventually cleared him, but it would be expected of a man of Hisagi’s character to remain throughout the investigation, clear his name, and shake the dirt off his feet. It was practically a ready-made cover.
And the best part, he thought was he watched Hisagi approach “The Lucky Top” out of the corner of his eye, was that the bird didn’t look like a cop. Those scars, that tattoo, the brawler’s walk-give him a week and the toughs would forget he hadn’t been one of them the whole time.
He didn’t visibly react when he saw Hisagi make him. Instead he settled back to wait and see what lieutenant would do. After all, knowing someone by reputation and information gathering was one thing, seeing someone with your own eyes was something else.
Shuuhei settled in the chair across from Shin without a word studying the other man. This was defiantly who he was supposed to meet, he had that sharpness in his eyes you only got from constantly being on guard, it was a look Shuuhei saw in the mirror every morning.
A waitress hovered at the cop’s elbow, Shuuhei ordered a coffee and slice of blackberry pie without looking at her, and the moment she walked away, he held a hand out to Shin. “I don’t think I need to introduce myself, but my mom would never forgive my lack of manners if I didn’t. Shuuhei Hisagi, and I’m assuming you are Captain Shin?”
Shin watched the way that Hisagi interacted with the waitress, and noted that there was room for improvement there. And undercover operative always had to know exactly who he or she was dealing with at all times. If Hisagi accepted the assignment, they’d have time to go over the basics and not much more than that in the way of training. He’d have to trust to the other man’s intelligence and ingenuity in order to keep himself alive, and Shin would not even make the offer if he wasn’t convinced the lieutenant had what it takes.
“Head Detective Seijuro Shin,” he said, moving to shake the other man’s hand in a firm grip. “I’ve heard a lot about you, Lt. Hisagi.”
Shin didn’t like to play games. But long experience had taught him it was often best to see what information a person would offer up about themselves before getting straight down to business as he would prefer. He wasn’t out to make the Lieutenant uncomfortable. But he was curious to see how the man would react to such a vague reference to his recent troubles.
Being called Lieutenant, when he had not introduced himself as such, was like a small jab in his side. A reminder that Shuuhei he was one of ‘them’. Not only one of ‘them’ but in the company of a superior officer. This meeting may be off the clock, and they may be in a place public enough to make it secret, but they had nothing in common except their work. The Lieutenant just hoped they both worked on the same side and this was not a proposition for something illegal. He didn’t know what he would do if it was, he had heard good things about Shin, good things from people he trusted, and he didn’t trust many people anymore. As much as he hated too, Shuuhei had prepared himself to be disappointed in Shin. But, no matter how much he tried the brunet couldn’t squash down his hope that this meeting would bring his next turn in the road.
It was that flickering fire inside him that made him smile. The smile was crooked from the scars that trailed over one cheek, but still genuine and it touched gray eyes warming them. “I am sure you have heard a lot about me, I have heard a lot about you too. The question is who we hear what from and what we believe.”
The waitress returned with his coffee and pie, Shuuhei turned his smile to her briefly in thanks, before taking a healthy bite. “I for instance, don’t honestly believe that you are a government spy from Belgium…. You aren’t are you?” This last was said around another bite of pie, with another smile to show he was only half joking.
Seijuro leaned back against his chair and picked up his cup of coffee, listening as Hisagi spoke. It was a deliberate move to make the other man more comfortable, to see how easily he picked up on other people’s body language and how he adjusted his own in response.
It was a good point, ‘who we hear and what we believe.’ Seijuro would be staking a lot on what he’d heard… and if he took him up on his offer, Hisagi would too. And if this was going to work, the two of them would have to trust each other. All right. No more games. He hated this kind of playing anyway.
Shin preferred to see what the other man was made of with his own eyes. But the nature of the assignment he hoped to have Hisagi fill was… delicate. He couldn’t be seen spending too much time with a candidate, the Concavos had too many eyes and ears in the department. He’d have to trust his gut. His initial assessment was of a man who was capable and willing to take risks, but he needed to know more than that.
“I am not,” Seijuro responded, taking a sip of his coffee. “Although I was unaware that the rumors had moved to Belgium.” Russia, he’d heard. Along with Turkey and Italy. Time to add one more to the list. It seemed like people never got tired of flapping their yaps around the breakroom. ‘Belgium.’ Bah.
“You are here, so I assume that you received my note. Tell me, what were your thoughts about my offer?”
Shuuhei was a nervous eater, the taste of pie always reminded him of his mom, and that brought feelings of safety, love, and home. A home Shuuhei remembered only with the taste of butter crust in the back of his throat. It was a shock that the cop had not put on a hundred pounds through the investigation, with all the pie he ate. It was also a shock, how bad the urge to lick the empty plate in front of him was. An urge he mashed down, relaxing in the chair across from Shin mimicking his pose effortlessly, though his coffee remained untouched.
What did Shuuhei think of the offer to transfer to Special Assignments? That question had haunted Shuuhei nightly since he received that note. Long after the brunt had burned the paper, that offer had continued to chase its tail in his mind. Presumably, changing to Shin’s department would include some kind of undercover work; probably Hisagi would spend the rest of his career propositioning hookers. It was an idea that curdled his stomach. It was an idea that made Shuuhei no longer want to lick his plate, and almost regret that pie, almost.
“No offense, Captain Shin, but I don’t think I am interested in staying at the clubhouse any more. It’s a club I am no longer willing to pay the fees for. I am sure you understand, especially having heard so much about me.”
Shin set his coffee back down on its saucer. It was much as he would have expected. Shuuhei Hisagi had been in the Force for four years, rapidly promoted, and according to the his record had kept his nose clean and stuck to what he knew was right-stuck to what he knew was right just once too often. Hisagi had earned his position. The scars on his face, the way that he held himself, the assessing look in those dark eyes-everything about this man indicated that he was a fighter.
Shin had done his homework. He’d delved as far back into Shuuhei Hisagi’s background as he could find, and he was more than a little impressed that the young man had come so far on his own. But his hard work had been repaid by betrayal from those he should have been able to trust, and Shin could not blame Hisagi if he wanted to walk.
He was curious, however. Hisagi had only gotten as far as he had because he had some sort of goal, something to drive him further. Was he really willing to abandon that completely, or could he be tempted to stick it out for one more assignment?
“IA dismissed all charges. You fought to clear your name. And now you’re leaving?” Shin leaned back against his chair and waited for Hisagi’s answer.
Long fingers musseled his already wild hair, as Shuuhei thought how to respond. They both knew, he hoped, that he proved his innocence and not just escaped the charges. The brunet had a feeling that anyone in his position would leave; get out before the scum on the force figured out how to throw something stickier at him. But the truth was, he had nowhere else to go. He felt like he was spinning his wheels, a misguided stint in University, a few years at the NYPD, he was getting too old to keep running around. If he hadn’t been framed, Shuuhei would have stayed. He would have fought against the dirty cops until he was old and gray, and left satisfied with his life.
The driving force behind Shuuhei was his desire, his burning need, and his promise to protect everyone he could. Didn’t that include protecting himself? No, but it did include making sure he was able to do his job, and that had been compromised. He was lucky this time, but he wouldn’t be so lucky next time around. What good would Shuuhei be if the men he put there killed him in jail?
His hand ran down his face, his fingers touched the smoothness of his tattooed cheek, and he looked at Shin, really looked at him. This game of back and forth, these veiled questions, this offer to transfer. He still had that hope burning inside him that this was his answer; this might be his way to stay on the force, and help people. He just had to decide if he trusted the man in front of him to have his back. He would have to let this stranger in, but how could he ask that without appearing weak.
“I didn’t take that evidence. I hope that you believe that, from me and not because IA told you. I didn’t take it, and I was lucky enough to prove it this time. But I will be more than useless if it happens again, and I am not so lucky. And it will happen again if I stay in my department.” Gray eyes study Shin, while he unconsciously traces one of the scars running down his face. “If I changed departments, Captain Shin, who I be less likely to be framed again?”
“I believe you, Lieutenant. I wouldn’t have asked you here if I hadn’t been satisfied with your character.” He exhaled a soft ‘heh.’ “And as for whether or not you’d be less likely to be framed…”
Shin leaned forward, placing his forearms on the edge of the table and locking his gaze with Hisagi’s. “You are certainly aware that corruption has leaked into every area of law enforcement. Protecting the public has never been easy; to serve and protect among the NYPD is just a hell of a lot harder than it is anywhere else. The mafia has too many inside men, too much power and far too firm a grip on this city. It makes it hard to know who to trust, makes it hard to stand firm when the man next to you could be tearing down everything that you’re working to build up. You did that, Hisagi. I understand that you’re a man of honor. That is why I am going to ask you to lie.”
Shin paused, letting his words hang in the air between them. "I am going to ask you to lie to everyone you care about. I am going to ask you to betray people you don't know yet, but people who you will come to enjoy and respect. I am going to ask you, Shuuhei Hisagi, to go under deep cover."
Tension he didn’t even realize he was holding eased from between his shoulder blades as Shuuhei listened to those words he needed so badly to hear. A soft sigh escaped his lips before he could stop it. So Shin did believe that he was innocent, and not only that, but Shin saw potential in him, enough potential to ask him to go ‘deep’ under cover.
A slow smile spread across his face. While the smile lit his eyes, his gaze remained serious. He wanted to show Shin that he deserved that trust, and that he would prove himself worthy. But as much as this seemed like the opportunity Hisagi had been waiting for, there were still questions he needed answered. As he tried to organize his thoughts, forming complete and well thought out questions, his mouth opened and those questions tumbled out fragmented and natural.
“Deep Cover? Doing What? For how long?”
It appeared that Hisagi was eager. Good. That meant the man hadn’t lost all faith in what it was they were trying to do. And at the same time… it meant he had no idea what Shin was about to ask of him. Would he be able to handle it?
Shin straightened up, moving to cradle the cup of coffee in his large hands. He stared down and the dark liquid, frowning slightly. “If you were to work for me…”
He lifted his eyes to meet Hisagi’s gaze. “If you were to work for me you’d have to be smart. You’d have to learn to pick up on the nuances of everyone around you. You’d have to be willing to do whatever it takes to preserve your cover, even if it goes against your gut, even if it goes against your integrity. The most important thing would be this and only this: getting the information, and getting out alive.
“If you were to work for me, you’d report only to me, and possibly to another contact I would give you. If, in the event something happened to me, or you could not get in touch with me, you would go directly to the commissioner. You could trust no one, not even your closest friends, with what you are really doing, for their safety as much as for your own.
“You’d be put in a situation where the only thing you have to hang onto is the mission, one where in order to be successful you will have to empathize with the very men you are going to turn in. The only thing you’d have to hold onto is that you are doing what is necessary for the protection of innocents. Because where the Concavos are concerned… no one in this city is safe until they are taken down.”
Shin set the coffee, untouched, back in its saucer and leaned back in his chair. His eyes never left the man in front of him, cataloguing every nuance of his expression, of his body language. Hisagi’s reaction to the information of exactly where Shin wanted to place him would be telling.
Shuuhei’s eyes were locked on Shin’s face as he described the complexities of the job he was offering. His lips formed and soundlessly repeated ‘getting the information, and getting out alive’. This was sounding more and more like exactly what Hisagi wanted, no, needed to do. He became a cop because he wanted to make a difference. For four years, he had trained rookies and sent them on the right path in the force. It was a small difference, Shuuhei had decided it was enough, but he had always known he could do so much more. He wanted, and was willing to put everything on the line for his job, and here was his chance.
At the off-hand, though well placed, mention of the Concavo family, the tattooed man had been unable to stop a robust laugh from echoing around them. This was exactly what Shuuhei wanted to do. It all seemed too perfect, looking at it here with this man. The Concavo’s most likely had men inside the NYPD, so it was only fair to have some of their own in the mob. Shuuhei loved this idea; he was shocked it had been offered to him, but also inexpressively proud and grateful for this chance. He had few friends, so the move from cop to thug would be easy. There would only be a few people who he would miss, a few friends who had become his family, but he would do anything to protect them.
“What do I need to do? How soon can you get me in?”
Shin’s eyes narrowed. Very eager. His investigation into Shuuhei Hisagi’s background had revealed that the man was an orphan, no living family, and therefore an ideal candidate to send deep into the underbelly of organized crime. But all the same… Shin was asking him to risk his reputation, his friendships, even his life.
“Before I tell you any more, first you need to tell me just why you want this assignment. You do understand that if you take this position, you will be completely on your own, living like a criminal. If you are in any way successful, it will get inside your head until the one thing that you thought you were sure of, your own honor, will be called into question. Your friends will think you’ve abandoned them. Why are you willing to do this? What makes you think you will succeed?”
It was Shuuhei’s turn to fiddle with his coffee cup, picking it up to stare into the inky depths. He was a man of few words, he never explained himself. In the orphanage no one listened or cared what he had to say. His clipped direct nature suited his job in the NYPD and he had seen no reason to change. So when he was asked to explain himself it took him a moment to collect his thoughts and trim them down to a manageable length.
Gray eyes lift from the caffeine darkness to look again at the man across from him. A sip of cooling coffee caresses his tongue on the way down and he nods, setting the cup down, ready to talk.
“I am sure you know plenty about me. You know that I have no family; you know that I keep to myself at work, so I have little tying me to this life. You know that I have a perfect alibi for appearing to leave. You know that I am clean. You know that I am strong. Criminals trying to get in my head? Nothing will have changed from the dirty cops who try to sway me everyday at work. My honor has already been called into question, this is a chance to regain it.”
Another deeper swallow of coffee, “It will be hard to leave the few friends I have. It will be hard, but necessary for their safety, and I would do anything to keep them safe. This assignment is exactly why I joined the NYPD. I know I can do this. Look at me. I don’t look like I belong behind a shield. I know that. I was built for this job. I have nothing to loose and everything to gain.”
A crooked smile touches his eyes, “And what an interesting twist of fate that the mobs cops come at me and then I am offered a chance to go at the mob?”
Shin listened carefully, weighing every word, every inflection, every expression in the balance. It became clear to him that Hisagi wanted, almost needed this chance. He was being driven onward from some motivation that was more than a simple desire to prove himself or get in on an interesting assignment. Hisagi honestly believed he could do this, that he would be perfectly suited for it, and in a way, he was.
Maybe. Hisgai was also painfully naïve. It was one thing to be tempted to cut a dirty deal at work, and yes, keeping his nose clean this long said something, but it was something else to be forced daily to stand by, to help, as the men you ate and drank with murdered and brutalized their way through the city. It was something else to force yourself to do those same things, just for the sake of maintaining your cover, telling yourself that it had to be this way.
Shin knew that what he was asking Hisagi to do would, at some point, break the young man in front of him. If he would be able to put the pieces together, and rise up stronger with the strength of his convictions burning within him and leading him on the way… that remained to be seen. But Shin also saw enough strength, enough desire, that he was willing to give the man a chance to stand or fall on his own.
Besides. As much as he hated to use anyone, Shin needed this too. It wasn’t good enough to just clean up after the wreckage organized crime left on the streets. It was time to act aggressively, time to position the mafia for a fall.
“Very well,” he said, relaxing his shoulders ever-so-slightly. “I’ll offer you the job. Your cover will be arranged for you. Do not contact me, I will contact you. You will follow my instructions precisely.”
Shin leaned forward, once again resting his forearms on the edge of the table. “This will be a long term assignment, Hisagi. Just establishing your cover could take up to half a year. Working your way through the ranks so that you can actually discover useful information will take longer. I know that you’ve said you want it. The offer is there, and it stands. But I do not want to accept your answer immediately. You have one week to think about it. If your answer is still yes, meet me here at the same time.”
Shin shifted his gaze away from Hisagi’s onto the briefcase on the table. “And take that with you when you go. It has more details about what will be expected of you. Burn them when you’re done.” He leaned back in his chair once again. “Any questions?”
Hisagi followed Shin’s eyes to the forgotten briefcase, one hand reaching to touch it hesitantly. “I think I will save my questions until next week.” His eyes left the case then, to meet the others again. “I have a feeling this,” he tapped the smooth leather briefcase, “will answer a lot of my questions, or at least, replace them with new ones.”
Fair enough. Shin nodded at Hisagi and retrieved his overcoat. Shrugging it on as he stood, he reached for his crisp fedora and fit it onto his head. “Nice having lunch with you,” he spoke in a normal tone of voice, giving one last tug to the rim of his fedora before walking away without a backwards glance.
Shin was satisfied with the way his meeting had gone. If his reading of Hisagi was right, he would soon have the exact piece he needed for this complicated game. It would take some hands on preparation; Shin had no intention of letting Hisagi go under deep cover without learning at least the basics every undercover cop was taught. But Hisagi was motivated, all his records had indicated that he was a quick study, and Shin had had seen the intelligence and the desire in his eyes. If Hisagi had the guts to stick with it… then everything would work out just fine.
A drizzling rain had started to fall, further obscuring the dusky city streets. Shin paused at the entrance of Grand Central to flip up his collar and reach into his pocket to retrieve a cigarette. Flipping the lighter opened, Shin lit the gasper and took a deep breath of the intoxicating substance, allowing himself the indulgence in celebration of a job well done. Sliding the lighter back into his pocket, Shin took another drag, the flare of the cigarette casting his face in shadow when it hit the brim of his fedora. Sliding his hands in his pockets to ward of the chill, Shin walked away into the mist.
Shuuhei watched Shin walk away before he flagged the waitress. A week to ‘think things through’ a week he would need to read and memorize everything in the briefcase, not certainly a week he didn’t need to use deciding. He had made this decision long ago, when he entered the police academy. His palms itched to open that case and start reading now, but he knew he would wait until he was home; there was really just one more thing to do before he went home to pour of the information about his new assignment.
The short redheaded waitress smiled at him waiting for his order. “I think I would like another slice of pie please.”