***Hello, everyone! This is actually an idea that I've had for a while, but it needed a lot of tweaking from its original form. I don't own anything except for Miuna, and let's go!

Decim could hear the steady sound of skating blades cutting into the ice rink from where he cleaned his bar. The previous guests had left him and his new assistant a bit shaken; even having worked as an arbiter for twenty-one years now, there was still the occasional guest that really rattled him.

Normally, those types of games wound up with a mess left in their wake. He didn't mind that as much as he minded the fact that his assistant also had to witness it. Once he finished cleaning, he went to the ice rink section of the Quindecim and stood by to watch.

A slender, young woman with pale skin glided across the ice with ease. Her chin-length, jet-black hair swung this way and that as she turned and jumped across the ice, revealing something she normally kept hidden by brushing her hair to cover her right eye. Her left eye bore the cross of an arbiter.

Her right eye didn't.

However, it wasn't that which had Decim concerned at the moment. "You know my rules for when you skate, Miuna," he said simply.

Whatever trance the young woman, Miuna, was in was broken, and she skated over. "I'm sorry, Dad... but you know why I didn't bother with them this time," she reasoned.

"I'm more than aware that you're still adjusting to being an arbiter; it's only been two weeks since you began," Decim said. He picked up the skate guards that were on the rinkside and held them out as Miuna got off of the ice. "But still, I hold my rules in place for reasons. You must remove your work uniform and your piercings before you skate," Decim continued.

Miuna removed her skates and put the guards on them. She stood up, and luckily, her uniform hadn't been damaged. The white button-up, black tie, and black slacks were all fine. The silver piercing on her lip and the silver stud earrings she'd worn ever since Clavis had done them were also still in place.

"You left something at the bar when you went to relieve your stress," Decim said. "My hair clip. Is it still at the bar?" Miuna asked. Decim gently pushed her to sit down, amd he sat next to her as he methodically swept her hair back over her unmarked eye, then placed a clip in it to keep it in place. The clip was golden, with the Quindecim emblem as the charm on it.

"Do we have any more guests coming today?" Miuna asked. "One more pair will be coming later. Afterwards, I will make dinner for us," Decim said. Afterwards, he wrapped his arms around Miuna. "I'll speak to your aunt Nona about the guests she has Quin send," he said.

That was something that Miuna liked—her father could always tell just when she needed comfort, even if he wasn't the best at giving it. Miuna wrapped her arms around Decim, resting her head against his chest. The scent of his shower gel and the scent of mixed drinks hit her. The scent of childhood.

"Thanks, Dad."

XxX

"You rarely call for me. Was it about what I had Castra send to you and Miuna?" As per usual, Nona cut to the chase.

Decim had been waiting at his bar for her to arrive after he'd called for her. Miuna had long since gone to her room for the night, and no more guests were scheduled for the day. "Yes, ma'am," Decim said. Nona hopped up on a barstool, and Decim began making her regular drink.

"I'm sorry, but you've eafned your qualification to judge murderers beyond those two I sent before Miuna came along. You were the one who also said that younwanted her to begin judging alongside you once she turned sixteen. I can't help her reactions to it. These people are dead; they're bound to have darkness in their memories," Nona explained. Once her usual drink was poured, she took a sip.

"She's my daughter. I can't help but be worried for her. If there is any possibility that I could have less gruesome murders, that would be much appreciated," Decim reasoned.

That was something Nona missed back from when Decim was still new; he listened to her a lot better. Still, she remained partial to him.

"Does she still sleep in Chiyuki's old room?" Nona asked, idly swirling her drink. Decim's stoicism softened, if only a little bit. "Yes," he said.

They both knew why Miuna had never met her mother. Chiyuki's body had already been a bit frail from lingering in the Quindecim for so long when the black-haired woman told Decim that she was expecting a child. How it was possible was a surprise to them both. But, then again, Decim did still need to eat, sleep, amd use the restroom, so perhaps he and Chiyuki should have considered the possibility.

In the end, the strain of having her daughter wound up taking Chiyuki from who she considered her husband by that time. "What I said that night still stands. Your original ruling was reincarnation, so that was what happened to her," Nona said.

That night had been an emotional roller coaster for her as well—she had been the one to deliver Miuna and had earned her title as an aunt. her heart had wrenched when Decim's silent tears of joy at becoming a father became sobs of despair at realizing that his wife was gone. Nona had spent the night in the Quindecim and regularly made visits in-person for a few weeks afterwards, rather than just observing from afar.

The petite arbiter finished her drink and hopped off of her chair. "Get some rest, Decim. You've got work in the morning," she said.

Decim couldn't quite bring his eyes to look at her as she walked towards the elevator. "Yes, ma'am."

XxX

Chiyuki's mannequin laid on its side, wearing a nightgown that had been hand-stitched. Around her neck was a leather cord with a silver band on it. Decim wore the same leather cord and band around his neck, but beneath his uniform. He laid down next to the mannequin. It was by no means the same, but it would do.

"I hope that she will last long enough to see her mother, reincarnated," Decim murmured. His slender fingers ran through coarse, fake black hair. He fell asleep with those thoughts.

Someday, she'll get to love you as I do.

***I really want to do more with writing Death Parade. If anyone has any ideas, then by all means, send them to me by review or PM. That being said, be sure to leave a review on the way out, and I'll see you all in the next one! Bye!