Apparently it was Adachi’s birthday?  I’ve never written anything for him before, so I thought I’d give it a shot.  Adachi and Naoto have a talk which, in turn, leads to a lesson.  

Warnings:  Spoilers for December and beyond.  Not really any pairings, unless if you want them to be there  ^^

***

What she cannot understand is how Dojima-san is so forgiving.

She watches from her desk as he walks into the station, late – which has been happening more often.  No one questions it, though.  Dojima-san has been through a lot and it’s a miracle that he even shows up at the station.  The other officers assume, she thinks, that he’s late because he’s spending time with Nanako.  

That’s half the truth, but Naoto knows the other half.

He’s going to see Adachi.

And it angers her, really, that Dojima-san can be so nonchalant about the whole thing.  He goes to visit this man on a normal basis, this killer, this person who has caused so many people so much pain.  He should be angrier than she is and she’s the one who went through the whole I am the shadow ordeal before walking through Heaven and a twisted version of their very own hometown.  

But no, he’s not angry at all, which makes her even madder.

“I do not understand it,” she whispers, glaring at the man behind the thick glass, “He comes to see you all the time.”

“Yeah, he does,” Adachi says with a chuckle, “I don’t really get it either, Shirogane.”

“He does understand that you are the killer, yes?”

“Yeah, he gets that.”

“When he comes to see you, is he angry?”

Adachi shrugs, “Naw, not really,” then he reclines back in his chair, smirking, “Why do you wanna know?”

“It is completely implausible!”  

“So you’re gonna yell on his behalf then?  What, are you sweet on him or somethin?’”

Naoto glares at him, “That assumption is one of the many reasons why you disgust me.”

“Oh yeah that’s right, it’s not him, it’s that punk kid right?  The one who beat up those bikers?”

Naoto glares at him, “Talking to you is useless.”

“Yet you’re still here.”

She’s not sure what she’s even trying to get out of this but she feels the need to be here, in front of him, frowning in disapproval over what this detective has become.

“You know what it is, right?”  Adachi asks, smiling at her, “You’re too hung up on this detective thing.”

“Excuse me?”

“If I were just some random guy who did this, you wouldn’t be here.  But it bugs you cuz I’m a detective, like you.”

“You are nothing like me!”

Adachi laughs, “Careful.  Didn’t those shadows teach ya not to deny shit like that?”

Naoto frowns back down, “Fine.  It bugs me, yes.  How could you just throw it all away like that?”

Adachi’s smile filters away and he sighs, “You need to let this go, Shirogane.  You’re way too obsessed with this detective crap.  You got friends and shit now, right?  The case is solved, let it go.”

“Do not make it sound like you are trying to help me.”

“Never said that, just makin’ a point.  You went through an entire cluster fuck of emotions and shadows and you still don’t get it.  Didn’t that world teach ya anything?”

Naoto decides to change the subject instead of dwelling on the words of a killer, “Dojima-san should be much angrier about this.  Even if you two were partners you have clearly betrayed him.”

“I guess that partnership means somethin’ to him,” Adachi tries to shrug it off but his shoulders are a bit too stiff, “Ask his nephew and that Junes brat, they know somethin’ about partnerships.”

“Yes well they would never hurt each other the way you did Dojima-san.”

“Look, are you planning on making me feel like an ass about all of this because you’re wastin’ your breath.”

Naoto’s first reaction is to keep going, to rub it in this vile man’s face because he most certainly deserves it.  But there’s something about the way he’s sitting behind the glass.  He’s not slouching the way he normally does, eyes bored and uninterested in what she has to say.  He’s actually looking away from her, tapping his foot against the floor, waiting… for what, exactly?  For her to berate him some more?  For her to snap at him the way she wishes Dojima-san would?  

The way Dojima-san obviously doesn’t need to.

“You feel bad about this,” she whispers.

Adachi frowns at her, “Oh don’t try and figure me out.”

“No, you do.  I saw that look on your face when Dojima-san called the stretcher for you.  You never wanted to hurt him, did you?”

“What, you want some grand confession outta me?  I already confessed to the murders, ain’t that enough for you and your need to be a goddamn detective?”

“You told me to let that go.  This is not about being a detective right now.”

“So then what’s the point?”

“I suppose there is no point at all.”

It’s strange to see Adachi smiling, a hint of that sincere, goofy smile reappearing on his face.  Nothing else is said between them, but as she sits and watches him she feels like no more words are needed.

She never visits him again.

And the next time she sees Dojima-san walking into the station – late – she nods to him, “Did you go see him again?”

The older man looks a bit surprised before he laughs, “Should’ve known you’d figure it out,” he says, smiling, “Yeah, I did.”

“Good,” she says softly, “That is good.”  

Before he walks away she speaks again, “Um… Dojima-san?”

“Yeah?”

“I… was thinking about taking a few days off, if that is all right.”

He shrugs, “Sure, go ahead, things have definitely quieted down around here, huh?”

Naoto nods, “They have.”

“Did you have any plans during your time off?”

“O-oh, just… the others were talking about a ski trip.”

“That should be fun.  It’s important to spend time with your friends.  Don’t become too lost in this whole detective world.”

“Yes,” she whispers, smiling a little up at him, “I will not let that happen.”

***

Notes:  So I always thought that the detectives could have an interesting relationship.  Not necessarily sexual, but I thought it would be a good dynamic sort of.  Considering how hard Naoto worked to become a detective, I thought it would affect her quite a bit to discover that a detective was behind everything.  As for Dojima, he takes it in a way that I think she wouldn’t quite understand at first.  He goes to visit Adachi and everything, and doesn’t really say anything bad about the guy.  

As for Adachi, I always felt that if he didn’t feel bad for anything, he would at least feel bad about Dojima and Nanako being hurt.  I do think that him being in that family dynamic would affect him, and that it meant something to him.  He shows hints of caring about them – even that chase scene, I think, he was concerned.  Dojima still showing him compassion would get to him, I think.  I mean the Investigation Team taking him back to their world is one thing, but Dojima doing something as small as calling a stretcher?  I think that would mean something.

It also means something, to me, that he bothers with writing that letter.  If he really was a villain that didn’t care, he wouldn’t have bothered.  I just think that Adachi is deeper than people tend to think.  I have a soft spot for villains who are human.  What they did was wrong, yes, but you can see that there’s still a sense of humanity somewhere.  Maybe not with the hero’s grand speech, but something tiny, on the side, that’s barely noticeable.

So this headcanon is for the detectives crew ^^