Panic At the Disco - The Ballad of Mona Lisa
Title: Black Widow
Pairing: None.
Rating: G
Summary: The mayor of Eito City dies of heart attack and Yoko suspects it foul play. His main suspect: the mayor’s wife.
LINK TO VIDEO
The man behind the desk is looking over his accounts book when he suddenly grips his chest, calm face contorting into a mixture of surprise and pain. He tries to breathe normally but that doesn’t work, leaving him gasping desperately for air. He tries to call out for help, but no audible words manage to escape his lips. At the back of his mind, he knows he’s dying; he can hear his heartbeat slowly fading away, but he refuses to lose. He tries to make as much noise as he possibly can to attract attention, toppling that fine lamp he bought for a very good deal last fall, taking the ashtray his friend had gave to him and smashing it on the floor - but it’s not working. Nobody is coming. And when the man finally realizes that, he stops fighting.
At a quarter to one, Murakami Shingo, mayor of Eito City takes his last breath.
--
Erika stands proudly at the top of the grand staircase, looking down at the people gathering around the parlour downstairs. She smiles. Her time has come.
She knows all eyes are on her as she walks down the staircase, one hand holding up the side of her demure black dress, the other sliding along the railing.
As she walks across the parlour, she greets the guests gracefully, accepting their condolences and giving pats on the back to those who need it while wearing a sad smile she had perfected since the night before.
When she reaches the gleaming black coffin, she pauses for a while, just for effect. Her husband looks peaceful, all dressed up in his finest suit, one that she had personally picked out for his funeral years ago. She brushes his fringe away from his face, half expecting him to open his eyes and expose her for who she truly is. But his eyes remain closed and she leans in, her mouth close to his ears.
”I’ve won, this time,” she whispers, voice deceptively sweet and innocent. “Goodbye, Shingo.”
She stands up slowly, starts to sob a little before she faces the guests.
“Thank you for coming today. I’m sure my husband will be happy that you came.”
Her voice is quivering as she speaks, gathering the sympathy of the guests. She bows deeply before mingling with the crowd, tolerating their stories about how great a mayor Shingo was and agreeing with every word they say.
Honestly, she doesn’t really give a damn
--
Nishikido Ryo makes sure there’s no one walking along the hallway before he slips inside the room. It’s larger than the average study with bookshelves lining all three sides of the wall and a beautiful mahogany desk sits in the centre of it all. He lets out a wolf-whistle. It must be nice to be rich.
Ryo makes a beeline for the desk, slightly disappointed when he finds nothing on it. He rummages through the drawers next, searching for anything that is slightly useful but there’s nothing but stacks of blank papers all bundled up neatly and a few pens.
He’s heading towards one of the bookshelves when the door opens, catching him off guard. The old housemaid stares blankly at him through the doorway.
He gives her his most charming smile.
“Ah, I’m sorry. I was looking for the…um...”
“Bathroom?”
“Yes! The bathroom. I though it might -“
“It’s down the hall, the last door on the right.”
“Right. Yes. Well, thank you.”
She’s still staring at him as he retreats out of the room, completely unaffected by his sheepish smile.
It could be much worse, he thinks.
--
“You won’t find it, you know. You’ve wasted your time coming all the way to this town.”
Yokoyama You, self-acclaimed detective extraordinaire, almost spits out his drink. She’s too close, he thinks. He can feel her breathing down his neck, causing goosebumps all over.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
Erika smiles as she takes a seat next to Yoko, making sure there’s a respectable distance between them. It is her husband’s funeral after all.
“You’re not going to find any proof. It was a heart attack.”
Yoko puts the glass down on the counter, trying to push back the frustration that’s boiling up inside him. Seeing her seemingly innocent face always manages to piss him off. Most of it is probably due to jealousy; he had never forgiven her for taking Shingo away from him.
“It wasn’t an accident and I’ll prove it.”
The look she gives him is almost sympathetic.
“You’re always acting like a child, Yokoyama-san. You need to grow up.”
With that, she walks off.
As Yoko watches her back, he has to stifle the urge to strangle the truth out of her. Instead, he signals for the bartender to bring him another glass of gin. If he’s going to walk out of the wake as a sane man, he’s going to need it.
--
The coffin is carried over to the town graveyard at noon sharp. Yoko stands by the sidelines as the priest says the final prayers as the coffin is lowered into the ground. He doesn’t notice the tears until Ryo hands him his handkerchief.
“Thanks.”
“You have to let it go. It’ll kill you otherwise.”
“Not until she’s behind bars.”
Ryo sighs as he pats Yoko on the back.
“I’ve talked to everyone. It seems that it really was a heart attack. Shingo was too stressed about the development of the metal plant, and smoking two packs of cigars each day didn’t really help him.”
“How did you know?”
“Unlike you, I risked my ass to investigate that baseless theory of yours. I’m demanding a raise for this.”
“In your dreams, Nishikido.”
In that brief moment it seems like everything is falling back into place again, the obsession over Shingo’s cause of death temporarily forgotten.
“Come on, let’s go home.”
--
It’s close to midnight when Erika finally gets to settle down. Dressed in her silk dressing gown while enjoying the finest champagne she can find in the liquor cabinet, she makes a toast to herself. Everything went down better than expected. The only person who suspected the truth gave up halfway through.
This is her time now. She doesn’t need a man by her side to run this town. All she needs is this estate, and now that she has it, she has everything.
Her gaze falls onto the local paper on the coffee table and she smiles. By the following day, her name will be splayed across the front page, announcing her takeover as the mayor of the city.
She doesn’t notice the small piece of paper that’s almost covered by the newspaper. If she did, she would have seen the sentence written on it in Shingo’s messy scrawl.
Erika did it.
Pairing: None.
Rating: G
Summary: The mayor of Eito City dies of heart attack and Yoko suspects it foul play. His main suspect: the mayor’s wife.
LINK TO VIDEO
Click to viewThe man behind the desk is looking over his accounts book when he suddenly grips his chest, calm face contorting into a mixture of surprise and pain. He tries to breathe normally but that doesn’t work, leaving him gasping desperately for air. He tries to call out for help, but no audible words manage to escape his lips. At the back of his mind, he knows he’s dying; he can hear his heartbeat slowly fading away, but he refuses to lose. He tries to make as much noise as he possibly can to attract attention, toppling that fine lamp he bought for a very good deal last fall, taking the ashtray his friend had gave to him and smashing it on the floor - but it’s not working. Nobody is coming. And when the man finally realizes that, he stops fighting.
At a quarter to one, Murakami Shingo, mayor of Eito City takes his last breath.
--
Erika stands proudly at the top of the grand staircase, looking down at the people gathering around the parlour downstairs. She smiles. Her time has come.
She knows all eyes are on her as she walks down the staircase, one hand holding up the side of her demure black dress, the other sliding along the railing.
As she walks across the parlour, she greets the guests gracefully, accepting their condolences and giving pats on the back to those who need it while wearing a sad smile she had perfected since the night before.
When she reaches the gleaming black coffin, she pauses for a while, just for effect. Her husband looks peaceful, all dressed up in his finest suit, one that she had personally picked out for his funeral years ago. She brushes his fringe away from his face, half expecting him to open his eyes and expose her for who she truly is. But his eyes remain closed and she leans in, her mouth close to his ears.
”I’ve won, this time,” she whispers, voice deceptively sweet and innocent. “Goodbye, Shingo.”
She stands up slowly, starts to sob a little before she faces the guests.
“Thank you for coming today. I’m sure my husband will be happy that you came.”
Her voice is quivering as she speaks, gathering the sympathy of the guests. She bows deeply before mingling with the crowd, tolerating their stories about how great a mayor Shingo was and agreeing with every word they say.
Honestly, she doesn’t really give a damn
--
Nishikido Ryo makes sure there’s no one walking along the hallway before he slips inside the room. It’s larger than the average study with bookshelves lining all three sides of the wall and a beautiful mahogany desk sits in the centre of it all. He lets out a wolf-whistle. It must be nice to be rich.
Ryo makes a beeline for the desk, slightly disappointed when he finds nothing on it. He rummages through the drawers next, searching for anything that is slightly useful but there’s nothing but stacks of blank papers all bundled up neatly and a few pens.
He’s heading towards one of the bookshelves when the door opens, catching him off guard. The old housemaid stares blankly at him through the doorway.
He gives her his most charming smile.
“Ah, I’m sorry. I was looking for the…um...”
“Bathroom?”
“Yes! The bathroom. I though it might -“
“It’s down the hall, the last door on the right.”
“Right. Yes. Well, thank you.”
She’s still staring at him as he retreats out of the room, completely unaffected by his sheepish smile.
It could be much worse, he thinks.
--
“You won’t find it, you know. You’ve wasted your time coming all the way to this town.”
Yokoyama You, self-acclaimed detective extraordinaire, almost spits out his drink. She’s too close, he thinks. He can feel her breathing down his neck, causing goosebumps all over.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
Erika smiles as she takes a seat next to Yoko, making sure there’s a respectable distance between them. It is her husband’s funeral after all.
“You’re not going to find any proof. It was a heart attack.”
Yoko puts the glass down on the counter, trying to push back the frustration that’s boiling up inside him. Seeing her seemingly innocent face always manages to piss him off. Most of it is probably due to jealousy; he had never forgiven her for taking Shingo away from him.
“It wasn’t an accident and I’ll prove it.”
The look she gives him is almost sympathetic.
“You’re always acting like a child, Yokoyama-san. You need to grow up.”
With that, she walks off.
As Yoko watches her back, he has to stifle the urge to strangle the truth out of her. Instead, he signals for the bartender to bring him another glass of gin. If he’s going to walk out of the wake as a sane man, he’s going to need it.
--
The coffin is carried over to the town graveyard at noon sharp. Yoko stands by the sidelines as the priest says the final prayers as the coffin is lowered into the ground. He doesn’t notice the tears until Ryo hands him his handkerchief.
“Thanks.”
“You have to let it go. It’ll kill you otherwise.”
“Not until she’s behind bars.”
Ryo sighs as he pats Yoko on the back.
“I’ve talked to everyone. It seems that it really was a heart attack. Shingo was too stressed about the development of the metal plant, and smoking two packs of cigars each day didn’t really help him.”
“How did you know?”
“Unlike you, I risked my ass to investigate that baseless theory of yours. I’m demanding a raise for this.”
“In your dreams, Nishikido.”
In that brief moment it seems like everything is falling back into place again, the obsession over Shingo’s cause of death temporarily forgotten.
“Come on, let’s go home.”
--
It’s close to midnight when Erika finally gets to settle down. Dressed in her silk dressing gown while enjoying the finest champagne she can find in the liquor cabinet, she makes a toast to herself. Everything went down better than expected. The only person who suspected the truth gave up halfway through.
This is her time now. She doesn’t need a man by her side to run this town. All she needs is this estate, and now that she has it, she has everything.
Her gaze falls onto the local paper on the coffee table and she smiles. By the following day, her name will be splayed across the front page, announcing her takeover as the mayor of the city.
She doesn’t notice the small piece of paper that’s almost covered by the newspaper. If she did, she would have seen the sentence written on it in Shingo’s messy scrawl.
Erika did it.