DISCLAIMER
The following is a fan-based
FICTION
Tokyo Ghoul, Tokyo Ghoul Root A and Tokyo Ghoul:re and other products related to the TG Series are all owned by Sui Ishida, Shin Towada and Shueisha.
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Case 1: A Sad Symphony (2)
I was pretty irked after spending a whole night alone in the park for nothing.
There was no attempt from the suspected Ghoul to kidnap any of the few people that used this time to jog around the ardous paths of the area.
The problem wasn't that I had expected some action this early in my career, quite the opposite, but I was quite annoyed that even in that peaceful setting that was the nighttime park, the cool wind reducing the warmth of the hot weather.. and I couldn't enjoy it with even a single nap.
It was around 10AM, around the time the park officially opened that I returned to the car to find a visibly rested Marude.
"From your face I can say you got nothing on our little trickster." I merely blinked as he continued, a small map set on the front of the car. "I have searched around for anything that could serve best for an hideout in the deep crevices of the Ward. There were some interesting hints of a group having nested around in the past, nothing that could help us in the present."
"Could it know we are here?" It was a plausible theory. While my situation could be explained with bad timing, Marude's own predicament was intriguing to say the least.
There should have been a spot where the responsible should have slept or get some quiet time while eating.
"Possible but I doubt this is the reason. The last remaining of the hideout I found is from five to eight years ago, no Ghoul is so precise in cleaning up their mess."
"Then that means the park is the only place where we can prepare an ambush-" "I will, kid."
I blinked at the interruption and voiced by protest. "But I thought-" "I don't need you thinking, Ryouga." The older investigator stated calmly. "Not yet, at least. If, and I repeat, IF I need your help with something I will contact you, understood?"
I nodded and, as I started to make my way away from the park, the man grumbled about 'brats lacking respect', causing me to sigh at the incredibly infuriating superior.
In a normal situation I would have pressed for having a more active role in the investigation but I could feel that I was too tired to be able to accomplish anything with any task he could have asked from me.
So I set to reach the section of the wards with some restaurants, ignoring most of the people squishing in the crowds forming in the sidewalks.
At least that was the plan as I felt someone incredibly small wrap their short arms around my chest. "Kai-niichan!"
A small smile formed in my tired features as I turned around to greet a smiling Emi. "Emi-chan, it's good to see you! Where you going to the park?"
She shooked her head. "I was actually taking a walk around home, Kai-niichan. What are you doing here?"
"I was going to grab something to eat, do you want to come with me?" The girl frowned a little and seemed to be ready to deliver some excuse when the sound of her stomach rumbling loudly reached my ears, Emi blushing a little in embarassment. "C'mon, I am paying."
She looked a little uncertain as I stretched softly my open palm towards her but, as her hunger started to poke for food, she let her smile return as she got hold of my hand.
"Lead the way, Kai-niichan!"
I chuckled a little as I stared at the childish wonder playing in Emi's eyes as she took the first bite on the small sandwich of the many I had bought. "Is it yummy?"
She gave me an happy look before nodding quickly, finishing devouring the delicious treat.
We were sitting in one of the benches near a basketball field, watching a match between two teams made up by several men in their late twenties.
"Which team do you think will win, Kai-niichan?"
I hummed quietly as I stared at the heated game with a simple analysing look.
Team N1 were those wearing white shirts and they seemed to be more refreshed than their opponents.
Team N2 seemed tired as their skintone easily seemed to get closer and closer to the color of their red shirts, but they seemed to be keeping a very rigorous scheme.
"I think the red team will win."
"Oh?" She blinked at my answer, looking deeply in the game before nodding to herself. "They seem much more focused."
"That is part of the reason, I suppose." I stated as I patted her head to reward her little reply. "The red team is keeping a standard basketball strategy, generally used only by official teams. They are professionists."
"So the white team have not.. trained?" She asked in a confused tone and I blinked. "That I cannot say for sure without asking them. What I meant is that the red team has played for more than the white team. They are experienced and know much how to defuse some offensive and counterattack efficiently."
Emi seemed to be really trying to understand my words and I smiled as she groaned in her arms. "This is so difficult."
"It's alright, Emi-chan." I tried to sound appeasing to calm her a little. "This game was incredibly difficult for me to understand when I was little."
"Really?" She asked, her attention fully on me but I couldn't understand why she would ask about that- Oh, she ended her share of sandwiches.
"Yes." I started as turned back on the game. "I never liked to play basketball back at the orphanage. I would just stare and sometimes be the referee of some games, never being the player in any of those."
"Oh." The girl looked saddened by something. "I-I'm sorry if I had brought some bad memories, Kai-niichan."
"Bad memories?" I asked in a funny tone. "You mean boooring memories, you adorable child." She giggled as I picked her up and close to my chest.
"Wanna go somewhere else?" She seemed to think about it, before shaking her head.
"Actually I promised mommy to return home soon." Emi stated in a shy tone and I sighed.
"Well, that means I shall escort you back home, oh fair maiden!" She giggled all the way as she told me which streets to take to reach her house.
I admit I have seen better places for a child to live and this certainly went much below the standards of the orphanage I grew up in.
It was a decaying old garage, I could for sure say that it had seen better days but.. this was so unhealthy, so bad.
"Are you sure this is the place, Emi-chan?"
She looked confused at the question, possibly not seeing the issue in living in such building, but she nodded and, as she reached ground, she skipped towards the place.
This.. couldn't be right.
I decided to follow her inside, ignoring whatever legal issue there was as this was clearly not a good place for a child to live and grow in.
As I stepped inside the place, I felt someone moving behind me and I did the only thing I could do to protect myself.
The case of Yukimaru, still closed, smacked the attacked by its side, sending it crashing on a one of the walls.
"Y-You will not harm her!"
What?
The ambusher was a brunette with short-hair and her face riddled with some cuts.
My eyes didn't catch her clothes as they focused on a very dangerous feature of the woman, a bloody knife in her hands.
The blood had dried on the dangerous blade and she seemed more than eager to hurt more.
"Mommy, no!" Emi rushed towards us and I turned to look at her panicking face. A mistake.
I was tackled, the knife up in the air poising to stab me from above, the mother's eyes glinting in madness as it descended towards me-*Schlitz!*
She paused for a moment, a surprised expression in her face as she turned on her side to see a blue drill-like blade puncturing her thigh, her sobbing child holding- no, manouvering the Kagune deep in her. "I-I-I'm sorry."
The older female fell, life draining from her face as the child dispersed her Kagune, rushing towards her mother's dying body. "Mommy, don't go. P-Please don't go!"
I was staring in shock as the Ghoul kneeled to embrace her human parent's corpse, my mind having issues with what was going on.
The girl ate sandwich, normal food, how could she be a Ghoul!?
A slow but growing whisper in my mind demanded me to do my duty of investigator, to proceed with the standard procedure with child Ghouls.
My hand felt heavy in trying to get the case of Yukimaru to open...
But it didn't bulge nor opened.
"E-Emi?"
Her sobs diminished mometarely, her head slowly turning towards me and showing something even more absurd.
One of her eyes had.. turned in a Kakugan.
That was not possible, I repeated loudly in my head, this is just a hallucination-
I blinked as the girl crashed on my chest and started to sob loudly on it, my body stuck in place as I tried to make sense of my life in that very moment.
What was I supposed to do?
She was a ghoul, that was a fact, but she didn't need to eat human flesh.
Could she be helped? Should she be helped?
So much mental weight was starting to add up to the girl's very own and I.. I made a decision.. one that could easily end my career.
"Emi-chan." The girl's head moved to look at mine and I sighed gravely. "I-I know it hurts but.. I need you to.. do something for me."
Confusion was easily lost in her despair but she nodded shakily at my words as I told her to start getting her clothes in a bag or two, my hand taking the phone out of one of my pockets as she did so.
"Ryo-kun! I was about to call you myself to tell you how awesome our first case was and how cool Shinohara is!"
"T-That is good to hear, Juuzou-kun."
"Your voice is wavering.. something bad happened to you!"
"Not.. Not to me. Are you currently home?"
"I was! Man, you should have seen how dull the receptionist was when we reported. Such a bi-"
"N-Not important. I need you to come by the 1st Ward and pick someone very important."
"...Did you get a girlfriend?"
"No." I sighed in my hands. "I need you to pick this girl.. her mother is dead and- Just come and pick her, I will explain once I return home."
"Geez, you sure are angry now. But I will demand two pizzas for dinner for this favour."
"Deal."
"I'm on my way!~"
I sighed as the phone call ended and I waited for Juuzou to come.
It sure was going to be a crappy situation to explain to incredibly eccentric friend but.. it sure was going to be worse to deal with Marude and the possible excuse he was going to use with that.
The bloodied knife... she was the one responsible for the murders in the park and.. she was trying to feed her daughter that.. but why?
Why would she force her daughter to eat human meat if she was more than capable of digesting normal food?!
A difficult question, one that I would have liked to know from the now dead woman.
For being the first case in my long journey within Tokyo I was sure this was easily going to be one of the most memorables.
AN
I know many people are expecting this to converge on the canon timeline and.. This is a brand, new story!
The cases will be mostly original but I will still keep up with some important events being highlighted in the background at first (Mado's death being one of the many examples). Then there will be some major situations like the 11th Ward Operation and the Kanou's case that will unite Kaneki's path with the OC.
When they will met? Man, that is going to be a true brawl for sure..
Lastly, the case 1's aftermath is going to be next chapter and will see the first report compiled with Kaizo's fabricated predicament and Juuzou being convinced to not murder the adorable half-ghoul.