Notes at bottom of story
Unbeta'd
TW: S*icidal thoughts, s*icidal ideation, obj*ctification, generally dark themes
»»—- ✼ —-««
Suzume was a perfect little dolly.
Unlike her brother, dressed all in black like any good mafioso, she wasn't as useful.
Little dollies were supposed to be pretty little things, the fragile and delicate faeries. Pink hair ribbons that tied off dark hair – Osamu had the same hair, but she came after, so she resembled Osamu, and not the other way around – and airy pink dresses.
"Oh, Suzume-chan! Are you here with your big brother again? Let me find you a spot love, the church always welcomes you" one Yumi Eijiri greeted.
Suzume smiled up at her, eyes half-lidded and airy like the sickly little girl she was.
"Thank you, Ejiri-oneesan. Onii-san isn't here today. Do you still have some of the scones from yesterday?"
"Of course! I'll get some for you right away"
Middle-aged, with auburn-blonde hair, Eijiri was a volunteer that frequented the local church. She was quite beloved by the local students
Suzume wasn't religious.
"Oh, before I forget, tell your brother he left his bag here yes? I would give it to him myself, but I don't know where he lives..."
Eijiri disappeared behind a set of doors, returning later with a black briefcase.
"Strange, to be carrying a briefcase at that age" she remarked, holding it out to her.
Suzume tilted her head, accepting it.
"Ah well, here you go Suzume-chan. Tell Osamu-kun I said hello"
"Of course, neesan. Thank you again for the scones"
»»—- ✼ —-««
When the church was empty, when all the people have left and the children gone, only she would be left.
Sundays were the few times she could get out of the port mafia base, so she wasn't in a hurry. Late-afternoon sun filtered through stained-glass windows, scattering amongst the pews.
If she were a bit more poetic or sentimental, perhaps she would have remarked upon it.
She wasn't.
Suzume surveyed the briefcase on her lap, idly wondering why Osamu had given it to her.
Because Osamu was too careful to have carelessly left it behind, clearly this was either a gift, or some terrible joke.
The briefcase was not locked. Inside was a jet-black pistol, of unknown make and origins, and a single white envelope.
She was confused. Surely Osamu knew better. While she could carry a gun unnoticed – pretty little girls didn't carry guns, no one would bother to check, mafioso or not – he knew she couldn't fire one with any reasonable accuracy.
She put down the gun back into the briefcase and tore open the letter.
[It may come in handy one day]
She read the letter again. Just six words. Osamu must have written it fairly quickly, but even then his writing was elegant and pristine.
Silently, she closed the briefcase. Lovely day indeed.
She wondered what she would have for dinner that night.
»»—- ✼ —-««
Ango Sakaguchi and Oda Sakanosuke accompanied her brother often.
Suzume had seen them before in passing, wandering the halls of the port mafia base, after missions that left the trio looking worse-for-wear. They were not as famous as Double Black, but formidable and competent.
"Who's the little pink one?" Ango once asked, walking with Osamu, spotting Suzume working on origami in an inconspicuous corner of an unused waiting room.
(There wasn't much to do as a little girl in a big mafia base, so she often did crafts to pass the time)
Osamu looked up, eyes narrowing. He might trust Ango, but Suzume was his obvious weak point.
"That's my sister" he said, taciturn and dismissively.
"Oh? I was not aware you had siblings, Dazai-san"
Osamu waved his hand flippantly.
"Well, now you do. Anyways, about the next mission. Mori wants us to smoke out some rats in the district seventeen warehouse..."
Clever Osamu, leading away the man as he talked. Suzume watched their retreating backs down a deep corridor, undoubtedly to a strategy session with Oda.
Suzume turned away, back to the drawing in her lap.
»»—- ✼ —-««
Gifts weren't hereditary.
To get one was chance. A child could be born to two ungifted parents and receive some extraordinary gift, one that allowed them what normal humans could never.
"You know, 'sumi, I always thought you'd take after me"
They were sitting in Osamu's office. The late afternoon sun clouded that day, grey ribbon-light that drifted lazily into the room. Suzume was doing some origami that day, folding little sheets of paper into pretty shapes.
She made a noncommittal noise.
"Onii-chan, you're being rather silly"
Osamu grinned, but with no real humour.
"Mm, so I am. You know, it shouldn't come as a surprise to most if you were really ungifted, why have you kept it hidden until now?"
Sharp eyes turned to her. Not threatening, but simply keenly curious. It was a dangerous look on her brother, directed at anyone but her.
Suzume finished a crane, and placed it on Osamu's desk. It seemed so out of place, innocent against a desk that signed away the lives of men.
"I didn't want to" she replied, and it was the truth. Perhaps others may be more apprehensive, hiding secrets from Ougai, but Suzume was Suzume and she knew he wouldn't find out, not on his terms at least.
Osamu leaned his head on one hand, still staring at her. She steadfastly ignored him, focusing on a paper cat half-folded in her lap.
"So what is it, imoutou? I admit I'm quite curious"
Suzume rolled her eyes.
"I think you know, onii-san"
"Well...yes" he said "You're right, but I want to see it with my own eyes"
And just to be mean, he reached over and plucked the half-finished paper cat out of her hands. Suzume turned to him in mild annoyance.
"Fine, but you owe me crab later"
"Deal"
"Fresh crab"
"Sure"
"With a side of caviar"
"Of course"
Suzume turned her wheelchair so she was fully facing Osamu. He waited in mild anticipation, hand on cheek, a strange glint in his eyes.
It was a tricky thing, gifts. They manifest at different times, in different ways, with different people. Osamu seemed to have control over his right away. Suzume had to work a bit harder for hers.
She reached on top of Osamu's table and took a random document – she quickly scanned it, it was a non-essential status update from one of his many subordinates – and brought it up to her face.
Osamu watched with half-lidded eyes, almost completely black in the grey light.
She closed her eyes, and pressed it against her lips. The taste of ink and dust.
For a moment, nothing happened. Then, the centre, where she had touched, started to darken.
Darken, darken until it simply eroded away, falling to pieces unto the floor. Like some sort of invisible black-hole, it hissed and spat, spreading from the centre until the paper was all devoured. Suzume watched, rather bored, as it crumbled away into nothingness.
"It's called Humility" she said, staring with dull eyes at her brother.
Osamu, still staring at where the document had disappeared, nodded. Absentmindedly, he flicked the unfinished cat origami off his table, where Suzume caught.
She continued, and Osamu went back to working, as if it had been a completely ordinary afternoon.
Suzume wondered what crab she would pick.
»»—- ✼ —-««
"Dazai-chan, it's good to finally meet you"
Suzume, looking up at the middle-aged, pleasant-faced man, shook his hand.
"Likewise. Sakaguchi-san. Thank you for taking care of my brother. And Sakanosuke-san as well of course."
Ango smiled, dismissing her as a threat. Oda sat beside them, in one Bar Lupin.
Usually, underage girls in wheelchairs weren't allowed, but Osamu had been a long-standing patron, and the place was all but empty.
Suzume sipped at her vanilla shake, glancing sideways at Osamu. He didn't look at ease, peripheral constantly keeping Ango in sight.
What was that about?
Silent clinking of ice against glass, Osamu's favourite whisky untouched. Dull, orangeade light that cast a sleepy glow.
"Sakaguchi-san, Sakanosuke-san, you have been away for quite a while. Did something happen during the mission? I'm worried about onii-san"
Suzume turned away, as if bashful for asking such a question so forwardly. Ango smiled reassuringly at her.
"Your brother is a very capable man, Dazai-chan. We just did some cleaning up, nothing to fear at all"
Oda stared at Suzume, as if she were some strange contradiction that shouldn't exist. She got that a lot.
Ango turned to Osamu.
"It's quite impressive, Dazai, you taking care of a little girl by yourself. You should ask Higuchi once in a while, I'm sure she wouldn't mind. Or Kouyou-san, I heard she's good with children, ungifted or any. Might have to soon as well, heard Mori-san gave out new orders for us to march out again."
Osamu grinned, taking a deep draft. The ice clinked pleasantly against the glass.
"I bet he did, the old man never cared much about us lot of grunts"
"Speak for yourself" said Oda, tossing in his two cents – he seemed to have lost interest in the younger Dazai sibling – "You're a big mafia exec, no way Mori-san doesn't think highly of you"
"Bleh, doesn't excuse his orders. Telling me to go here and there, I'm beat!"
Osamu flopped down onto the counter, a thoroughly petty expression on his face. Ango chuckled at his antics.
"The infamous Demon Prodigy, defeated by a couple of round trips 'round Japan hm? Well, I will leave it at that then. Just got back from a trade, y'know? Catch you later, Odasuke-san, Dazai-san"
Osamu raised his glass in farewell as the older man took his leave. Oda watched.
The door clicked shut behind Ango, the sound of splashing footsteps echoing away.
All at once, Osamu's good humour dropped. In its place, a miasma gaze that clouded over his face.
"Hey, Odasuke, did you notice?"
"Notice what?"
Osamu poked at the ice in his drink.
"His bag. There was an umbrella in there, wet. The trade deal was in Tokyo"
"So?"
Oda turned to Osamu, not quite understanding the significance.
"His trade deal was in Tokyo, so he used his umbrella there. It had been raining today"
"Falsehood. Here's a hint, he travelled there by car"
Here, Osamu didn't elaborate, instead turning to Suzume beside him.
"Imoutou, I think you know what I'm getting at"
Suzume shrugged, vanilla shake almost done.
"Perhaps. Sakaguchi-san stood in the rain for some time, a trade deal shouldn't have taken that long. He was lying, Sakanosuke-san"
Osamu nodded.
"Which means he's hiding something" he continued.
"But he's an informant for the port mafia, surely-"
"No. He could have simply told us, and we would ask no further. He knows that, we know that. This wasn't orders from Mori"
Suzume watched with disinterest at the two. Osamu was deep in though, but Oda's eyes widened at the implications.
"Still..." Osamu continued. The ice in his drink was nearly completely melted. "Could be nothing. Keep an eye on him, Oda. And you too, 'sumi. He sees you as a weak link, use it to get closer."
She considered the request, like she had a choice in the first place.
"Okay, onii-chan"
»»—- ✼ —-««
Suzume wasn't an asset to the port mafia.
Her presence was tolerated simply because of Osamu, for what he could bring. While they were unsure if offing Suzume would lead to any ill-effect...
Osamu was an unpredictable man, who hid half his cards up his sleeve and expected you to up the ante anyways. Ougai knew that, knew to leave the sleeping dogs as they were as well.
Suzume wasn't a great burden on the mafia. She was small, didn't take up space, mostly minded her own business. Her tutoring completed, but without the physical prowess of an assassin or informant, she was mostly left alone.
A shadow to Osamu.
But she wasn't the only child here. Even in the mafia, young voices could be heard.
One Ryuunosuke and Gin Akutagawa were the mafia's wards as well, and while their situations weren't the same, all three of them were largely at the mercy of Ougai.
Suzume met Ryuunosuke once, after training. Darkened gymnasiums and high-set windows that cast pale-white light into a utilitarian facility.
Osamu must have been feeling a bit sour that day, because she entered just in time to see the boy collapse. A heap of black cloak and blood.
"That's all for today, Akutagawa. Be better, there's no second chance on the field. Your next mission is in two days, clean up the floor"
Osamu didn't notice Suzume there until he made to leave. He paused for a split second, eyes meeting, before he brushed past her.
No words were exchanged. Floor's all yours.
Ryuunosuke lifted himself with trembling arms, dry-coughs wracking his entire body. Suzume watched with rather disinterested eyes.
Disinterested, not apathetic.
(There was a difference)
"Akutagawa-san"
Ryuunosuke's head snapped up at an unfamiliar voice, excited eyes meeting dull ones.
"...Dazai-kun" he muttered.
Ryuunosuke had seen her before, in passing and in word. Osamu had a sibling, they said, one completely different from him. Soft-spoken and gentle. Like a fragile porcelain dolly.
Without Osamu, she couldn't survive. That's what they all said.
Looking into her eyes now, Ryuunosuke could say that there was absolutely no innocence in them.
He guessed she didn't have any incentive to pretend in front of him. He wouldn't blab, not if it would hurt Dazai-san.
Silently, she extended a hand in an unspoken invitation. Ryuunosuke glared at it before attempting to push himself up, only to collapse as his legs bucked and gave way.
"Are you my brother's protege?" she asked.
"What is it to you?"
"I know about you, and Akutagawa-chan as well. Your sister is progressing steadily, she is a good assassin."
Ryuunosuke turned away, flushing as he realized he was in the presence of Osamu's little sister and couldn't even manage to lift himself up, pathetic. What would Dazai think?
"...thank you" he cautiously replied, unsure of her motive.
Suzume tilted her head, questioningly.
"Come, Akutagawa-san. I'll help you get cleaned up"
She wasn't a saint, but she wasn't quite a monster (yet).
And looking into the eyes of the boy in front of her, she couldn't help but be reminded of herself, many years ago.
»»—- ✼ —-««
Chuuya Nakahara was an enigma.
Brazen, quick to act and even faster to defend, Suzume couldn't understand him. Apparently, normal humans thought like this, or so Oda told her.
Her brother was composed most of the time, nothing he did was uncalculated, sloppy, but Chuuya brought out a side of him she'd never seen before.
He looked almost like an actual teen his age should look, arguing with their friends and making bets over stupid things. Normal things children have – should have had – that...
Suzume decided then, that even if she couldn't understand him, she liked Chuuya.
"Oi, kuso-Dazai, who's the short one?"
She bowed, in the bowels of the port mafia base. It was after a mission, and she had come down to welcome Osamu home.
"Suzume Dazai. It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance"
Chuuya's eyes widened. He looked back and forth from the two of them in rapid succession.
"Oh surely not, there's two of you!"
Osamu made an offended noise at that. She smiled in mild amusement.
"Chuuya Nakahara-san, is it? Thank you for being there for my brother, you two make great partners"
"'Sumi! How could you-"
"Hah?! Which part of this stupid mackerel seems like good partner material?!"
That devolved into another pointless argument of who was more competent.
And that was Suzume's first meeting of the other half of Double Black.
»»—- ✼ —-««
Then, the Ango-situation exploded.
Oda was sent to check on them. Suzume expected it was Ougai that sent the orders directly.
She wasn't supposed to be there that day, but when she saw a panicked Oda when the man was usually calm and methodical sent off some distant alarm in her head.
And it wasn't her business. That was between her brother and the mafia, but...
Osamu didn't debrief her on many of his missions – whether out of a sense of brotherly affection or simply because he didn't care enough, she'd never know – but this was a big case. It was important she knew, both to spy on Ango and to know the situation.
"Ne, Sakaguchi-san, is everything alright" she asked one night, when it was just the two of them.
Ango was helping her fold origami. He looked up then, an unreadable expression on his face.
"Hm? Oh, I suppose so. It's all going according to plan"
He said it like a soldier, with nary any emotion. And while that wasn't unusual, Osamu's words rang in her head.
"He's hiding something"
Suzume changed tact. Perhaps she'd cast a lure.
"Sakaguchi-san, do you think onii-san likes me?"
Ango chuckled gently. A naive question from a naive girl.
"Dazai-san loves you, Dazai-chan. Your brother is a very busy person, but doesn't he always come back to see you?"
Suzume nodded, eyes lighting up as if his words had reassured her.
"I didn't think of it that way. Thank you, Sakaguchi-san"
"My pleasure, Dazai-chan. Now, you have to fold this corner inwards..."
Hook, line and sinker.
»»—- ✼ —-««
In the empty mass hall of the church, when Yumi Eijiri was off reading stories to children, Suzume simply sat underneath the golden light.
The church wasn't rich, but it was old. Stone masonry and stained-glass windows that belied the old taste.
For some reason, it was always kind here. Not so much actions as a feeling. Soft edges and honey-gold wood.
Perhaps she would have shed a tear at the scene – soft and gentle light that filtered down like a mother's hug would evoke some deep-seated sorrow and benevolence, that would set her (dead) heart beating again...
She wouldn't know what that'd feel like. The only kindness she's ever felt came from Osamu, and she wasn't even sure if that was right.
...
Suzume wasn't religious.
So when no one was looking, she put down the sheaf of documents she was reading, ink that may sign away lives and futures, and clasped her hands together.
That day, she prayed to a God she didn't believe in to be here.
Please save my brother
»»—- ✼ —-««
"Onii-san, can I stay with Sakanosuke-san today?"
Osamu paused at the unusual request.
To fool your enemies, you must first fool your friends.
"Any reason for this, 'sumi?" he asked, eyes narrowing, a dangerous glint. It didn't faze her, she may have been one of the few that didn't fear Osamu the least bit.
"You're going away again" she said, a statement, "and I want to see who Sakanosuke-san has been taking care of. Curiousity"
Osamu considered her request.
"Your birthday is coming up, isn't it? Very well, I'll tell Odasaku. See if Ango's been there"
Suzume nodded agreeably.
»»—- ✼ —-««
"Onee-san! You're so cool!"
Kids swarmed around her wheelchair, commenting on how cool it looked, how cool she was.
Suzume smiled gently at the gaggle of children.
"Onii-chan got this for me"
"Wow, wish I had a big brother...But Sakanosuke-nii is good too..."
"Ahh, I can't choose!"
"Hey! It's my turn to touch the chair-"
"It's a wheelchair dumb-dumb!"
"I'm not a dumb-dumb!"
She watched with patient tolerance as they started to fight over who got to touch the wheelchair first. Out of the corner of her eye, a white van parked near.
Right on time.
"Children, how about this" she said, as several men egressed with guns, "we can play hide-and-seek, but whoever hides the longest and is the quietest gets to take a turn riding with me"
Everyone went to cheer before Suzume held up a finger in playful chastisement. Six faces looked at her first with confusion, before realizing what she meant and whispered excitedly.
"Alright, go hide! This game will take very, very long!"
Scattering, the children all found hiding places within the house. Places adults wouldn't think to check, because they wouldn't fit.
Banging on the door, followed by a single gunshot. A sharp groan cut-off, and several men entered.
Suzume didn't turn to face them.
"Oi, where are the kids?"
"They said they'd be here-"
"The kid in a wheelchair's gotta be Oda's ward"
"Would have gotten here later, but that punk insisted..."
"Scared off by the port mafia's prodigy, I reckon"
"Idiots, what's there to fear from one man?"
"Whatever, grab her"
A man stepped forward, clad all in black and gun in holster.
"Scream and you're done, you hear me?" he hissed. Suzume nodded mutely.
"Scared, I think" another chuckled, tucking away his gun as well. There was no point, not when there were three of them and one of her.
All according to plan.
»»—- ✼ —-««
When Oda rushed home after a horrifying epiphany, he found two things.
One, the dead manager.
Two, a white van with the face of a certain black-haired dolly in the back window.
»»—- ✼ —-««
Loaded into the van, Suzume surveyed her surroundings.
To rile up Oda, they wouldn't simply kidnap children. No, they had to do something worse as a catalyst. He was a very kind man, who would forgive and forget until he couldn't.
They must have planned to kill the children in the van, along with the unsuspecting grunts.
Carefully, Suzume slipped her hand under the bottom-left tire, the easiest one to be shot out, and felt for something hard. Her handlers had turned away, bickering amongst themselves.
Duct tape, and something rectangular.
Peeling it off, she inspected the small bomb. Remote activation, with a manual override if damaged.
She wasn't impressed. Amateur moves, from a desperate man. Then again, children don't make a habit of checking under vehicles for bombs.
Back turned towards the kidnappers, who were making a move back to her, she silently pressed her lips to the hard cover. The box stilled for a moment, ticking frozen, before a circular erosion started to spread.
"Oi, bitch, what do you think you're doing"
Suzume didn't answer.
"Shut up, we don't have time, lets get out of here"
They got into the front and started to drive. In the back, Suzume saw a panicked Oda run out, face full of fear.
Check.
»»—- ✼ —-««
It was kind of funny, to see one Andre Gide's confused expression as she was wheeled into the large dining hall.
"Boss, we brought the hostage"
Andre stared at her for a second in confusion before breaking away. Suzume supposed it was a small change to his plans. No matter, Andre would probably shoot her himself, in front of Oda.
"Thank you, you may leave"
"Sure thing boss. Now, about my next paych-"
A gunshot rang through the air.
Oda was here.
And the gears began to turn. Right on time, not a second more, not a second less.
»»—- ✼ —-««
Osamu, all smiles now that the danger was pass, was wheeling his sister in an uncharacteristic move of brotherly affection.
Perhaps he felt his little sister deserved this.
Suzume tilted her head, as if thinking.
"Onii-san, you say it as if you weren't the one that provided the poison, bullet-proof vest, and gun to me"
Osamu rolled his eyes at the blase tone.
"I trust you" he said honestly "And I thought you couldn't shoot"
"Hearing that from onii-san feels funny. Gide-san thought I was dead after shooting me, so he lowered his guard. It was difficult to miss at such close quarters."
Osamu chuckled under his breath. At the end of the day, Oda was safe, though Ango was on the run. Can't have everything, he supposed.
"You have all of us fooled, ne, Imoutou?" he chirped, wheeling the girl towards the main Port Mafia base.
Suzume didn't answer, there wasn't really a point.
She looked away, into where the sun was setting.
It was so pretty today.
»»—- ✼ —-««
"Suzume-chan, are you sure?"
Ougai, fingers threaded together, looked quite dangerous at the moment.
Suzume stared at him, eyes devoid of emotion.
"Yes sir, please allow onii-san to leave the mafia"
Osamu wasn't working today, he had been given a vacation for his "exemplary service" and "to recover from the incident". She wasn't a fool, knew it was Ougai's way of throwing him off the scent. Not that it would work.
Stray dogs fought to survive you know, and Osamu didn't live this long by chance. The port mafia boss or not, Ougai was aware that if his protege had aspirations of dethroning him, he would very well be painted in red and ink.
Still...
"Dazai-kun is my best soldier, Suzume-chan. I can't afford to lose him"
...reluctant to lose him. A dangerous piece on his board, but one instrumental.
"Then allow me to take his place" She countered.
"You, take the demon prodigy's place?"
If Ougai was a less-composed man, he might have laughed out loud at the outlandish idea.
"A month starting right now, I will assume onii-san's position without informing his subordinates. Onii-san will, of course, be monitoring what orders I give out. If at the end of the month, no change has been detected, will you grant me my wish?"
Ougai thought for a moment, leaning back in his chair. It was ludicrous, but if Suzume truly were cut of the same cloth as her older brother, this would prove to be a wonderful opportunity.
(He had suspicious, the younger Dazai sibling wasn't as harmless and naive as she fooled everyone into)
He was also aware of their rather strange relationship. While Osamu seemed kind and approachable on the surface, he knew that wasn't quite true, that there was a cruelty within him that Ougai himself may never understand.
It allowed him to kill a man in cold-blood, for no reason; horrifying detachment that made him seem more demon than human.
Suzume, the younger of the Dazai siblings, loved her older brother very much, even if it was very possible he would never reciprocate those feelings.
She would much easier to keep in line. She had a comprehensible motive.
"Very well then, Suzume-chan. It's going to be your birthday soon, isn't it? Do not disappoint me"
Suzume bowed.
"Wouldn't dream of it, sir"
»»—- ✼ —-««
Osamu didn't take it well, at first, but Suzume was nothing if not adamant when she really wanted something. She loved her brother very much, and when the opportunity to pull him out of the mafia's grasp, she would take it with no questions.
"Ah, Sakanosuke-san" she had once said, a quietly-panicking Osamu in the background of some unused meeting room, "will you take care of my brother once he's out?"
Oda, still recovering from the Andre-incident, considered the request.
"Mm, Dazai is my friend as well. You needn't have asked, Suzume-chan"
The ensuing silence was broken by Osamu's indignant protests, which both members of the conversation steadfastly ignored.
»»—- ✼ —-««
A month passed by very, very quickly.
(None realized that their esteemed leader had been replaced by his smaller copy)
She had seen Osamu work many times, so it came naturally. She knew his tone, his flair, what orders he would give for practical matters, and what he would give simply because he was bored.
An almost seamless transition, even Ougai was impressed.
"Well then, Suzume-chan, I think you've earned the position. Your errant brother is free to leave, as long as he doesn't prove to be a major enemy of the port mafia"
It was natural, his flippant tone and calculating glint. In the end, they were all pieces on Ougai's board, and when sacrificing one piece proved to gain a more powerful one, it would be logical to take the risk.
Suzume bowed then, at the waist from her position.
"Thank you sir, I shall not disappoint"
"I wouldn't think so, you're a capable lady. They have twenty-four hours to prepare, I'll notify your team of the change. Your next mission is in two weeks, I want to send Akutagawa-kun on it, it's time he does something useful"
Suzume bowed again before politely taking her leave.
Ryuunosuke took the news the worst, but the prospect of his mentor in a happier place did placate him some. That, and the gentler pace Suzume would take during his training – she was powerful even with her handicap, and her gift was very, very deadly – served to endear her.
Not needing to pretend to be her older brother, Suzume was free to be much kinder to her subordinates. It wasn't very noticeable-
(Now that Osamu was gone, his former subordinates received word they were to be under new leadership, some faceless member Ougai himself chose)
(Never did they associate it with the little girl dressed in pink)
»»—- ✼ —-««
"I suppose this is goodbye, onii-san?"
Osamu, now donned in a beige trench-coat, standing beside a packed-up Oda, looked at her with some unreadable expression.
The port of Yokohoma was popular for goodbyes.
"I suppose gratitude are in order"
Suzume shrugged.
"Onii-san, I think we both knew it would end like this"
Osamu didn't reply for a long time, and just when Suzume was about to turn around and leave, she felt a hand on her cheek.
Calloused, yet incredibly gentle.
For the first time in many years, Suzume turned around in surprise.
Osamu's eyes softened, hand still cupping her face.
"Show them hell, 'sumi"
It was a minute before she replied.
"I will. Take care, yeah"
Mildly amused, Osamu straightened again, retracting his hand.
"Crush them"
"Be well"
On the horizon, the sun was setting again, dyeing Yokohoma in a mix of peach lemonade and strawberry ink. I twas the same sunset as every day before this one.
If Suzume was a sentimental person, perhaps she'd comment on it.
She turned around, and returned home. Back to the port mafia base.
Done!
If people really, really want to, I can write a second piece, but for now I think I'll leave it like this.
I planned for this to be so much shorter, but didn't want to split up the chapters...but then I'm also worried too much information was packed into this...
I mean, even then, I still cut out a few scenes I wanted to include. Bleh, let this be a learning opportunity...
Also also, I am editing this at 12:40AM. My eyes feel like rocks. The pacing might be weird, but that's for tomorrow-Maria to deal with.
Tonight, enjoy this terrible fic with unexplained plot points and confusing bits that I can literally not iron out no matter how hard I try.
Some things I wanna clarify!
- Suzume is a reincarnator! She has lived a life before this one.
- It's a bit strange for Mori to give away Dazai's position so easily, but remember. Mori has known Suzume for years ever since they were kids. He suspected she wasn't quite as harmless as she sort of made herself out to be. The test was simply a confirmation of what he already knew
- Suzume has "osteroporosis"
- Her ability is something I wanted to elaborate more on, but there wasn't an opportunity bleh. Technically, it's not a corrosive so much as a poison. It's deadly in that it would release a poison that would corrode whatever it touched, and also nullify other's gifts if they tried to undo the toxin
- Fun Fact: If Osamu used his nullification ability on the same target as Suzume, it would render the target immune to abilities instead of corroding into themselves for as long as the toxin remains in their system. Laxatives'll get rid of it faster :D
Thank you for reading, and I'll see you (hopefully) soon.
Constructive criticism always appreciated,
Maria.