Summary: Ougai Mori—Yokohama's most infamous underground doctor—is a formidable genius with a reputation on the same level as the Port Mafia's. His clientele and contacts range from the aforementioned Port Mafia to the Japanese government's Special Abilities Department. Ougai Mori's least known trait is his proclivity to somewhat accidentally adopt children with special abilities. Dad!Mori.
The Case of the Murder on D Hill
—Edogawa Ranpo
Yokohama, Japan
One Year Later
Current Day
Dazai smiled. "My Otouto (Little Brother), how are you?" He let go of Atsushi's collar, dropping the destransformed weretiger to the ground of the alleyway. The Agency's newest rookie was barely older than a teenager and still far too naive—Atsushi was also shockingly nice at times.
"Dazai," Ryuunosuke Akutagawa blandly replied.
Dazai clutched a hand over his heart. "How cold."
Ryuunosuke narrowed his eyes. "Who do you think I learned it from?"
"Ooo, Otouto (Little Brother) has some bite now." Dazai grinned. He nudged the lifeless bodies of the Tanizaki's siblings with a foot. "Yosano-chan isn't going to be happy that you're making her work."
Ryuunosuke shrugged, uncaring. "It won't take her long to fix them."
Higuchi was stopped from shooting the strangely cheerful man by Akutagawa's glare. She frowned. The metal pattern on the grip bit into her tightly clenched hand.
Dazai chuckled as he watched the two Port Mafia members. He waved a hand dismissively. "Run along now, Otouto and let me clean up your mess. I don't want to explain to Mori-san about why I had to defang you."
"This isn't over," Ryuunosuke stated. He still had a mission to complete: capture the weretiger. He would find a way around Dazai's schemes.
Dazai smiled. "Of course not."
XXX
A Few Weeks Later
"If you told them to, your children would bring Kyouka back, Mori-sensei." Kouyou was secretly furious, and worried, but she hid the latter with desperation.
'Wards', Mori almost corrected. The word died on his tongue-it wasn't worth the argument. He waved a hand dismissively, something few people would have dared to do to the Port Mafia Boss. "Their decisions are their own. Although they get involved, I will not unless the life of one of my wards is at severe risk." He locked gazes with Kouyou until she backed down. His tone softened. "I am neutral in Yokohama's disputes unless special circumstances force me to act. You already know this."
XXX
Later That Day
The office of the Armed Detective Agency was never quiet for long.
Kyouka came back from shopping with Yosano. She recognized Dazai after the man turned around. She drew her knife and prepared herself for a fight.
Dazai put his palms up.
Oda walked inside the office, carrying some pastries from the cafe downstairs.
Kyouka backed up a few steps to keep the two men in her vision at the same time. She remembered Oda—he had red hair, just like Ane-san and Chuuya-nii-san.
Oda put the food down. He tried to place a hand on Kyouka's shoulder to reassure the terrified girl. He was forced to move away to dodge the knife aimed at his throat.
Kyouka stilled.
Dazai was crouched in front of her, seeming oblivious to the knife raised against his throat. He looked into her eyes and cheerfully declared, "We will fight for you to be here. In our family, we get to choose which side we stand on." Although his tone was happy, his eyes were dark.
"Family?" Kyouka asked, unsure.
Yosano walked out of the infirmary. She crossed her arms at the sight. "Chuuya and Ane-san consider you family. That makes you our little sister too."
Kyouka lowered her knife. "I. . .don't understand."
Dazai shrugged. "That's fine. You'll learn."
XXX
Family dinners during Atsushi's days being a bounty were a bit awkward.
Oda's kids ignored the atmosphere with the magic obliviousness children and a few adults have. Because of their efforts, things moved along normally and many staring contests were interrupted in favor of dealing with whatever said children were doing—this often involved dodging food or rubber bands.
"How's Kyouka-chan doing?" Chuuya asked. "Ane-san is still worried." He rolled the water around in the bottom of his glass; it was a habit left over from drinking wine.
"She's fine," Yosano vouched. "I've been keeping an eye on her."
"You mean, you've been taking her shopping," Dazai translated. He dodged the subsequent kick aimed at his shin.
Chuuya snorted.
"I've been keeping an eye on her," Yosano repeated.
"Good." Chuuya smiled.
XXX
Katsumi Oda had gotten sick while hanging out at the Armed Detective Agency office. Yosano using her ability on the child was out of the question for obvious reasons, like trauma. Sakunose Oda called the only other doctor he trusted; which is why Ougai Mori came over to the office a few minutes later.
"Who's the doctor?" Atsushi whispered.
Dazai hummed mysteriously. "You could say he's here as the unofficial pediatrician for Oda's kids."
"Yes, but what is his name?" Kunikida said in a low voice bursting with irritation.
Ranpo had gotten up from his desk to greet their guest. He took the lollipop out of his mouth. "Mori-sensei." His tone was somewhat respectful, the type of tone usually reserved for Fukuzawa.
Mori smiled. "How are you doing Ranpo-kun? It has been a while since I've seen you."
"Fine." Ranpo shrugged. "Yourself?"
"Managing," Mori replied. He no companion by his side—Elise was noticeably missing. She was at the house, keeping an eye on Q.
Dazai stretched once more then walked over. He swiftly joined the conversation between Mori and Ranpo.
Atsushi and Kunikida exchanged a look before following their lackadaisical coworker.
"This is Mori-san," Dazai introduced with a gesture towards his former. . .guardian? Parental figure? He didn't exactly know how he would put it. He was somewhat preoccupied with stealing candy from Ranpo's pockets.
"A pleasure to meet you, Mori-sensei." Kunikida gave a small, polite bow.
Curiosity welled up in Atsushi's eyes. He bit his lip before daring to question, "How do you know Dazai-san and Ranpo-san, Mori-sensei?"
"I adopted Dazai-kun and Yosano-kun when they were children," Mori simply said.
"It's true," Dazai sang at the expression on Kunikida's face.
"You were raised by a respectable doctor?" Kunikida said in disbelief. All of his suspicions about Dazai's past had been thrown into the mud and stomped upon by a stampede of particularly lively elephants.
Dazai almost laughed. He doubted Kunikida would still think of Mori-san as 'respectable' if he knew about Mori being an underground doctor instead of a normal 'works at a local clinic' type.
Ranpo snorted, clearly having the same thoughts as Dazai.
Mori smiled kindly. "Yes. I think they all turned out rather well."
Kunikida was caught flat-footed. He awkwardly murmured an agreement. He was saved by the other four of Oda's children who appeared to flood the doctor with questions.
"Oji-chan (Grandpa), are you going to help Katsumi?"
"Oji-chan (Grandpa), will it hurt him?"
"Oji-chan (Grandpa), will Katsumi be okay?"
"Oji-chan (Grandpa), do you think Katsumi will be able to play with us soon?"
Yosano peeked her head out of the infirmary and gestured for Mori to come in.
Mori ruffled the heads of the kids within reach. "Katsumi-kun will be fine. Don't worry. Now, let me go do my job and take care of him, okay, brats?"
"Okay, Oji-chan (Grandpa)," the four children said in disappointment.
XXX
Kyouka decided to broach the subject with Ranpo on a whim. Oda, Dazai, and Yosano hadn't helped her understand what was going on; but, maybe the resident genius detective could? "I still don't get why they call me part of the family."
"It's sort of a by-proxy adoption." Ranpo frowned as he tried to carefully peel a sticky caramel chew from a wrapper. He popped it in his mouth. He took out a few candies from the bag in his hand and placed them on the table. He arranged them in a rough circle formation with a gap or two left for more to be put. "See, Chuuya considers you a little sister so everyone else does." He put a candy in the circle, filling the gap. "Dazai, Yosano-chan, and Oda-san also adopted Atsushi-kun." He put a second candy in the circle.
Kyouka tilted her head. "And who adopted them?"
Ranpo dropped a candy into the center of the circle-he tapped it with a finger. "Ougai Mori, an ability user and underground doctor. You weren't here yesterday, but you met him when Chuuya took you for dinner that time."
"What about you?" Kyouka stared at the detective, curious.
Ranpo wrinkled his nose, trying to find the words. "I'm kind of a cousin? Fukuzawa is my guardian and they consider him an uncle."
Kyouka's thoughts veered back to the family as a whole and what was going on. How would this really change her life? A second shot at having a family was a terrifying thought.
Ranpo sighed. He tossed Kyouka a caramel candy. "Since you're a part of the family, we will protect you," he reassured. "You also have the right to choose what organization you want to join, if any. That's a rule all of us uphold pretty strictly." Ranpo tacked on in a very knowing voice, "Otherwise, Dazai and Chuuya would be arguing about it every day."
Kyouka smiled slightly at the joke. She unwrapped the candy without fear of it being poisoned. She would trust them.
XXX
Chuuya rarely got seriously hurt because of his ability, For the Tainted Sorrow. Most of the time it was small things and he could take care of them by himself—Mori had taught him how to.
Anything similar to a regular lab or hospital unnerved Chuuya. This was not a new occurrence, but it had been exacerbated by discovering his origins. . . .It was unfortunate that the Port Mafia infirmary was included in that category.
Chuuya clutched the wound in his side. Blood trickled from underneath his fingers. He ripped some paper towels off and pressed them against the wound.
He sat on the kitchen counter and put out his phone with his unbloodied hand.
Hellion number 1: Are you home?
Mori-san: I will be soon
Mori-san: Why?
Hellion number 1: I was shot
Mori swore under his breath. He started fishing in his bag for his car keys. "Elise, collect the payment from the client. I'm going to the house."
XXX
Ranpo was Q's babysitter when no one else could. He always knew when Q was lying or breaking Mori's rules (which Chuuya helpfully typed up for everyone years ago).
It was a stressful job, but one that was sort of fun too.
Disasters still happened occasionally.
Ranpo stared up at the line of ketchup—it went from the tiled floor all the way up to the plaster on the ceiling. He looked back down the Q, who still had a bottle of ketchup in his hands.
Q giggled nervously and backed away.
Ranpo sighed and pulled out his phone. If he didn't clean this up, he was screwed; like, Mori-would-dissect-him-at-the-sight-of-this-mess screwed. Or, since Ranpo was Fukuzawa's ward, Mori would just make Ranpo wish he had been killed.
Cap Boy: I need help
Mister Fancy Hat: With what?
Cap Boy: . . .
Cap Boy: It's hard to explain
Cap Boy: Just please come to the house when you're off work
Damage control for the ceiling now taken care of, Ranpo yelled, "Q! I know you're hiding in the closet upstairs! Come down and help clean this!"
XXX
The dinner during the three way war were far worse than the ones during Atsushi's bounty days.
Oda and his kids were not there.
Q was silent, watching his older siblings with wide eyes.
Ryuunosuke was soaking the room in blood lust.
Yosano's grip on her cup was so tight Mori was afraid it would shatter.
Chuuya looked ready to skewer Dazai.
Dazai was grinning smugly and kept a knife folded in his napkin.
They were interrupted.
"No fighting at the table. Your jobs are allowed to be brought up, but I will not allow any of you to fight each other. So stop it," Mori callously reminded.
There was a warning in his purple gaze that they were pushing it. They were toeing the line and he would intervene if he felt he had to.
XXX
"What happened?" Ranpo blurted out.
"Q is missing," Yosano informed with death in her eyes.
Ranpo's expression tightened, mirroring the looks of Yosano and Oda. He slipped his glasses on without hesitation. "Tell me everything you know."
XXX
"Ango-kun, there you are!" Dazai chirped. He threw an arm around his friend.
"What do you need, Dazai?"
"Some help regarding Kyouka-chan's legal status." Dazai grinned.
Ango sighed. "That'll be hard to do. I assume you have a plan?"
XXX
Fukuzawa sat on one side of the table. Kouyou sat on the other. Mori was in the middle, acting as the mediator.
The conversation between the two leaders had become a stalemate.
"May I interject?" Upon the response he received, Mori leaned forward and continued, "Fukuzawa-dono will send Dazai-kun. Kouyou-kun will send Chuuya-kun. They can spring the Guild's trap and survive." The trap was Q, but he didn't need to point that out for them. He paused. "They will be your united front against the Guild."
Fukuzawa nodded. "That is acceptable to me, Mori-sensei. What about you, Kouyou-san?"
Kouyou tapped her painted nails against the mahogany table. "I accept your proposal as well, Mori-sensei."
XXX
Dazai had Chuuya draped over his shoulder and Q on his back. He mentally complained about his strained muscles all the way back home.
Yosano took Chuuya from Dazai in the living room. She knew from the blood on Chuuya that he had used Corruption. She would need to heal Chuuya soon, preferably before he woke up.
"Q?" Mori asked.
"Asleep," Dazai reported. "I don't think he was really hurt physically."
XXX
"What happened with the ability user the Guild kidnapped?"
Dazai looked up. "Oh, him? He's fine, Atsushi-kun."
"Fine?"
"He's back with his family and they're taking more precautions with his safety." Dazai shrugged. "The kid will be fine."
XXX
Mori heard the shift of fabric from behind him. "Are you awake, Q?" He asked. He was taking inventory of the medicine in the cabinets.
"Do you think God hates me?" Q asked, dully. Sleep had not been kind to him, as it was accompanied by constant nightmares about the question. The words had been ringing in his head ever since he woke up.
Mori looked over his shoulder at the child. "No." The word was said simply, the only sure sign his wards had picked up on of Mori being honest.
Q smiled shakily.
Mori sat down next to the boy.
Q pressed himself against the doctor's side.
Mori made no comment of the tears soaking through his coat.
XXX
Ranpo and Fukuzawa had dropped by and ended staying to watch a medical drama with them.
Mori spent a while critiquing the medical situations and treatments. This action brought groans from some of the less medically inclined viewers around him.
"So, then how much force is needed to break a bone?" Ranpo questioned, interest piqued by Mori's latest remark.
"Depends on the bone. A clavicle? Seven pounds. Weakest point of a small bone? Twenty five pounds. Human skull? Five hundred and twenty pounds." Chuuya hummed thoughtfully. "To break a neck is a bit harder, you'd need about a thousand to thousand two hundred fifty pounds of force."
Ranpo was busy typing all of that into a note on his phone. He gave a thumbs up in thanks.
XXX
Q was going back to school that morning. Before he left, Mori handed him something. It was a bracelet with small, sharp spikes on the outside.
"Only when you're in real danger and there's no one else to help you, understood?" Mori's expression was stern.
Q nodded and slipped on the bracelet.
XXX
A Few Months Later
"Kyouka-chan? Who is it?" Atsushi asked.
"Hello," Dazai cheerfully greeted. Behind him stood Yosano and Ranpo. "We're going out for lunch. Want to come, Kyouka-chan, Atsushi-kun?"
Kyouka was already grabbing her purse and phone.
"Uhh. . .sure," Atsushi agreed.
They had no idea what would be coming in a few days time.
XXX
Fyodor Dostoyevsky's plan had started.
Fukuzawa and Kouyou were infected with a virus-like ability. This ability would kill both of them. . .unless one of them was killed within the next forty eight hours.
XXX
Dazai had been shot through the back—the bullet responsible had also nicked his lung on the way out. He turned his head slightly. "What are you doing here?"
"Waiting for someone to make a move," Mori replied. He dropped into the chair beside Dazai's medical bed.
"Shouldn't you be out there stopping them from fighting?" Dazai raised his eyebrows.
Mori waved a hand dismissively. "The Armed Detective Agency and Port Mafia won't suffer any real loss of life. Chuuya-kun and Ranpo-kun should keep their sides under control."
Dazai chuckled. "You trust they'll both understand we're just play fighting to make it seem like we're going along with the plan?"
Mori smiled. "Yes, exactly. And. . .if there are mistakes, they won't be fatal ones."
XXX
Tanizaki stood over the bedside of the unconscious Port Mafia Boss. In his hands was a knife, a knife he intended on using.
Someone grabbed his wrist. The person's fingers crushed his hand, forcing Tanizaki to drop the knife.
"Did Ranpo know about this part? Tell me," Chuuya Nakahara demanded.
Tanizaki froze under the weight of the executive's glare. In that moment of hesitation his face was shoved against the floor and his arm pulled behind his back.
"Tell me." Chuuya wanted to kill Tanizaki right here and now, but he needed answers first. Additionally, he would probably only hurt the detective the bit, as causing more friction between the Port Mafia and Armed Detective Agency was a very bad idea right now. There was also the matter of his siblings being mad at him for killing a coworker of theirs. All of this meant Tanizaki was off the chopping block, but Chuuya wasn't going to act like the detective was. It would be more efficient this way.
Tanizaki bit back a curse as Chuuya applied more weight to his arm. It was a clear threat from Chuuya that he would break Tanizaki's arm if the detective kept refusing to answer.
The vent grate fell to the floor. Kyouka jumped down.
Chuuya leapt onto the ceiling to avoid a slash from Demon Snow, Kyouka's ability.
Tanizaki ducked underneath Demon Snow's swing. He vanished from sight with the use of his ability and took cover beside Kyouka, ready to support her if she needed it.
Chuuya's glare was no less terrifying. Any attack on Ane-san would be taken seriously by him, no matter the perpetrator's identity. "Kyouka-chan, did Ranpo order the hit on Ane-san?"
Kyouka shook her head. "No."
Chuuya ran a hand through his bangs—the only sign of his relief he would allow himself. "Good. Tell him we'll meet at the arcade, 24th hour of the virus."
Kyouka nodded. Demon Snow's blade tore at the wall, making a nicely sized hole for her and Tanizaki to leave through.
Chuuya's men burst into the room. . .and the Armed Detective Agency members burst out.
All of them were ready to shoot at the slightest sign of an intruder. But it didn't take much to see the people jumping from the window. Unfortunately, they were too late to stop them.
"Sir?" The leader of the squad said, asking for further orders.
"Nothing you saw or heard leaves this room. Understood?"
"Understood, sir," the men said in unison. Their loyalty to Chuuya would ensure nothing would spread.
XXX
There was only one arcade that Chuuya could have been referring to: the old one with beaten down, miraculously still working machines three blocks from the bay. Chuuya, Dazai, and Ranpo went there to hang out and play games after school when they were teenagers.
Chuuya came early. He couldn't resist the urge to put a few yen coins in the slot of a fighting game.
When Ranpo arrived, he couldn't refuse his desire to relax either. He smiled as he sat down at the machine opposite Chuuya. As the machines were hooked up, the two men could play against each other.
They let nostalgia and the joy at a good match carry their worries away for those few seconds.
Reality ensued as Ranpo clicked his tongue in annoyance. His character died a half-second later. If he were a bit younger and Fukuzawa wasn't at the risk of dying in a day, he would make the excuse of being rusty and demand a rematch.
Chuuya smirked. If he were a bit younger and not the acting Boss of the Port Mafia, he would be pumping his fist up and down. He sighed and stood up. "Business?"
"Business," Ranpo agreed.
The two men were young. They stood off to the side of the large room. One of them munched on a candy bar. No one there would suspect who they were really were: not college kids hanging out on a lazy morning, but some of the most powerful people in the city; what they decided on today would shape the history of Japan in no small way.
XXX
This was their plan.
Atsushi and Akutagawa would flush Pushkin and the mastermind out of the mountain base. Fukuzawa, Kouyou, The Black Lizard, and an Armed Detective Agency member or two would capture Pushkin. Everyone else would go after the mastermind-this objective would be spearheaded by Dazai.
Fyodor Dostoyevsky was sent to Tartarus, a prison built for containing humanity's most dangerous criminals.
XXX
"You think there will be more?" Dazai's tone was probing.
He looked out the window. Rain splattered against the screen as the wind changed. The lightning cracked in a brilliant display, but only made the darkness seem larger by comparison.
". . . Yes," Mori said with regret. He wished he wasn't right but . . .this was the end of a battle and the start of a war.
Hopefully, he would not need to intervene much. He trusted that his former wards would do fine.
A/N
*cough*mori really means 'his children' in that last sentence*cough*
Ranpo is a good cousin. Getting to do more of him was fun.
Did a bit of a snippet style for some of this chapter, as I didn't see a point in completely rehashing three seasons.
Timeline notes: We are caught up to the present day now.
Chapters:
1-Mori
2-Yosano
3-Fukuzawa
4-Dazai
5-Chuuya
6-Akutagawa
7-Q
8-Oda
9-Ranpo
10-?
-Silver