Disclaimer! I do not own Bungou Stray Dogs. The characters are owned by Kafka Asagiri and illustrated by Sango Harukawa. The only things I own are my storyline and OC's. I am not making money off of this story, nor do I plan to.
This story takes place sometime after season 3 of the anime. This can be seen as canon divergence as I do not follow the manga nor the light novels.
…...
The sound of a door opening jolted Charlie out of a blurry sleep. Her head shot up from where it rested on her crossed arms. A glance around showed she had fallen asleep at her desk after sewing up the body and putting it into storage, taking off her surgical gown and gloves, and simply collapsed in her chair. Her desk and chair were located in a supply closet that served as her office. It was rather large for a closet, at least six by ten feet. But it had a cot, her desk, a folding chair, a basket that held one or two changes of clothes, and a small filing cabinet that served to hold her files. It was more lived-in than her apartment.
Her eyes flicked to her watch on her left wrist, 5:36 AM. She had most likely fallen asleep around two in the morning.
Three hours of sleep.
Great.
"Have you began work on my case yet?" Came a sudden voice in her ear, causing her to let out a very undignified shriek and nearly fall from her very uncomfortable folding chair. Rudyard stood or rather floated before her. His arms were crossed over his button-down shirt. Now that he had calmed down somewhat, he took the form of how he looked before he had died. A button-down rolled up to his elbows and tucked into trousers and dress shoes. He had a flat cap hat covering his buzzcut and he now sported a pair of rimmed glasses.
"Uh… No. I fell asleep…" She muttered, peeling her face-shield and mask off her face, rotating her jaw as she slowly blinked away sleep.
Rudyard let out a ghostly screech, swiping her papers from her desk as the lights began to flicker wildly in her office.
"YOU WILL SOLVE THE CASE!" He bellowed and she had to take a moment for her ears to stop ringing before she replied.
"I will, I will. Well- to the best of my ability, I'm not a homicide detective, just a medical examiner who can see the dead. I just needed a quick power nap is all." She hid a yawn and her ears pricked at an unfamiliar sound.
It was the sound of shoes clicking their way down the hall, then a pause, then a muffled voice. A woman's voice. They had probably found the shattered glass of the lights from Rudyard. The door to the area behind the glass of the autopsy suite opened and the clicking of shoes entered. Charlie stared dumbly at the door to the supply closet as the handle turned and swung open.
Red hair tied in a traditional bun with golden pins and cherry-red eyes. The woman before her was dressed in a purple, pink, and maroon kimono and held a traditional Japanese umbrella in her left hand, and a closed flip phone in her right. She looked at the smaller and more disheveled woman still slumped haphazardly over her desk and blinked once. Twice.
"Pleasure to see you again Miss Dickens. Mori has a message for you." Kouyou Ozaki twirled the handle of her parasol in her palm as she took in the sight of Charlie looking so disheveled. The shorter woman grunted and jerked her head towards the door,
"Sure, but first let me get coffee. It's too early for this."
Charlie sniffled as she stood and stretched her arms over her head. Then she straightened her clothes, retucking her button-down into her trousers. Kouyou waited patiently and followed Charlie out into the breakroom set down the hall from the autopsy suite and supply closet. She had to pick her way delicately around the broken glass while Kouyou near glided over the shards. There, Charlie turned on the ancient coffee machine and listened to the burbling of the hot water as she leaned against the counter. Rudyard floated through the wall, brushing his way through Kouyou's entire body. She gave no sign she even felt anything. No one ever did, because they never felt anything.
The coffee pot beeped and Charlie busied herself with prepping her coffee. She took a sip and made a face. Kouyou watched in silence, only raising a single sculpted eyebrow when Charlie coughed after choking down a single mouthful. The younger woman finally slumped into the chair across from the other woman at the table.
"So, what does Mori want?" She asked, taking another sip of her coffee and having to clench her hands around her mug in order to keep from making a face. Kouyou pulled a file from the sleeve of her kimono and set it on the table between them. Charlie slapped her sleep muddled fingers over the folder and pulled it closer to flip it open.
Four bodies, all had been decapitated and their heads had been placed on the victim's chests. Charlie blinked several times, flipping through the pages to find more information on all the victims. All Port Mafia members. Murdered somewhere around three in the morning.
"So according to this… these members were found in the same place after death even though your reports show they had been in completely different areas of the city on completely different missions?" She slapped the folder closed and stared at the Port Mafia Executive in the eye. She received a nod and a card was slid across the table to her,
"Mori will have a member of the Port Mafia escort you to the crime scene. He-"
"Woah Woah Woah, hold your horse's woman. I haven't even agreed to take on this case yet." Charlie cut her off through a hastily swallowed mouthful of lukewarm coffee.
In an instant, Kouyou's expression soured from polite indifference to something a bit more… angry.
"Mori is prepared to pay you a very large sum in order for you to take on this case. He has expressed great interest in having you work with the Port Mafia again."
Right.
Again.
She had worked with them on several occasions before, they paid well enough for a criminal organization but she couldn't complain. Their pay kept her in a home with a job and enough money in savings to keep her comfortable for more than a few years. With a sigh, she flipped the folder closed and slipped the card she had been given into the folder under a paper lip to keep it in place.
"Right. Fine. I'll take the case. But I expect reimbursement for time lost on any other of my cases by dealing with this one. I also want insurance for if I get hurt, hell knows I probably will." She laid it out quickly and precisely. Kouyou nodded at this and her lips curled into a light smile.
"Excellent, Mori will have someone escort you to the crime scene." She said as she stood and began to leave. Charlie glanced at the folder before calling to the taller woman,
"No one has messed with the crime scene have they?" The Mafioso waved a hand as she exited the room,
"Of course not, Mori instructed that nothing is to be touched before you get there." She said and before Charlie could reply, the door shut and left her entirely alone with Rudyard behind her.
He whirled, face melting like acid and face stretching, his jaw unhinged and his eye sockets turned jet black.
"YOU WILL SOLVE MY CASE!" He gave an unearthly scream and changed. Charlie averted her eyes, she didn't need to see what he turned into.
"I will, I do take on multiple cases at a time you know. This will likely be a quick case anyway. If they took the time to decapitate their victims, the dead likely got a good look at their face." She explained and downed the rest of her coffee, making a face as she did so. Another quick glance at the clock and she hid a grimace. Time to get to work on her current case and now the new one. Kouyou said someone would pick her up right? Better get ready then.
After rinsing out the mug in the sink, Charlie headed back to the supply closet, sweeping up the glass on the way and depositing it in the bin. Her button down was straightened out and her signature brown suspenders being pulled over her shoulders and clipped onto her waistband. After a moments thought, a knitted maroon sweater was pulled over top. After she finished dressing, she grabbed her work bag, a large leather satchel, and started to pack. In went a notebook and some pens, a portable voice recorder, her white suit, several pairs of gloves and shoe coverings, a respirator mask, and a pair of goggles.
With a grunt, she buckled the bag and hefted it over her shoulder, grabbing the file she had brought with her and flipped it open once more. The list of names and the photos of the victims stared back at her with the glossy business card on top. She looked at the fancy kanji, taking a moment to simply look at the pretty colors of gold writing against glossy black. She could hear the hissing static of Rudyard's still angry form hover over her shoulder and read what was written with unblinking eyes.
Nakahara Chuuya | Port Mafia Executive | +81-(045)-XXX-XXXX
…
FairyTailWzard's OC's (these are mine! Do not steal them!):
Charlene "Charlie" Dickens: Sleep-deprived 23-year-old medical examiner works to solve homicides and perform for the police, Port Mafia, and the Armed Detective Agency. Ability: The Haunted Man and the Ghost's Bargain; allows her to see and interact with the spirits of the dead.
Rudyard Kipling: Deceased Englishman in his 30s, unknown background. Ability: The Jungle Book; he can manifest his tattoos into real animals. Has tattoos of a python, Bengal tiger, and a large bear.
Jacob Marley: Charlie's assistant in the morgue and during autopsies. Lives with his nephew Tim Cratchit and businessman Ebenezer Scrooge.