Vol. 3

Chapter 1

Waking Up

That same room appeared. The white door with the glass rose was to her left. To her right was that familiar mahogany door with the steps. Alu blinked. Her eyes scanned the room for anything else. Nope. It was just her.

Huh, if that white door had been an extension of that woman's power, then that only meant…

"She is still here on some level," Juubi nodded, looking at Alu, having trotted up next to her in his silver ten tailed fox form. Though for now, he only had one tail out.

"What should we do?" Alu sighed, looking at him, a hand on her hip. "I know that I have my pride under control now but should I have that guy, Dazai just touch me again?"

"No, that little annoying detective, is correct," Juubi shook his head, ears flattening against his head as he looked at Alu with those icy blue eyes of his. Juubi's eyes could actually change color but for right now, his mood was simply well, Juubi-ish. Alu still had to figure out all his various moods. She'd known him for a while but she was still learning herself as much as she could about him that he would allow which he didn't really allow at all so most of it was luck and circumstance.

"How so?" Alu asked, puzzled.

"That woman's ability feeds on one's prejudices leading to an imbalance in how they keep their pride in check. As it stands, that man could cancel out her influence but then that woman could easily activate it again when he's not around. Essentially, this is one of those emotional manipulation psychological abilities that needs more than a quick fix to resolve." Juubi sighed, trotting closer to the door on the left.

Alu's eyes followed. He was walking towards the door that she really didn't want to open. It was the red mahogany door. "Okay, so, keep my pride in check and that'll take care of that woman's ability," Alu said, crossing her arms. "Got it."

"Tell me, what is behind this door that you're so afraid of facing?" Juubi asked,curious, looking back to her over his shoulder.

Alu grimaced. She didn't know herself but the thought of finding out was worse, she felt. "It doesn't matter. I'm not opening that door," she said flatly.

"Well, what if this door is the door that will resolve this woman's control over you?" Juubi reasoned. "I mean, alternatively, you could just let me out to kill her…"

"Yeah, no dice," Alu said, rolling her eyes. "You know killing isn't something I condone."

Juubi snorted, glaring at her. "Oh, here we go again. Alright little miss 'I was raised on the 'Power of Anime'', you really think you're better than me simply because you won't do what's necessary to win?"

Alu could sense Juubi's disgruntled attitude. But she sighed. Juubi could be a handful sometimes. She was the host though so she knew that despite all his bark—his bite only went as deep as she would allow it out there. "Is it necessary to take life to win?"

"Duh," Juubi snorted, growling at her again. "You think countries like these even got civilized by merely holding hands and singing tunes of love and joy? Hell no. There was blood shed. And a lot of it. There's scheming, spying, information snatching, and sometimes, torture in order to achieve the outcome desired. You humans will do anything to shove your version of 'righteousness' down the throats of others." Juubi turned his nose up, with disdain. "Acting like you're above killing is still ridiculous to me. You won't be a little girl forever, so you better learn to grow the hell up before you really do get yourself killed for your immature ideals. Because if given the chance, your own kind will stab you in the back."

Alu was quiet, as Juubi spoke. She knew on some level he was probably right. But she smiled at him, and she reached out a hand to pet his head. Juubi growled, hopping back. She paused, and blinked, before pulling her hand back with a small apologetic smile on her face that Juubi just couldn't stand. Alu rarely got angry with him. Sure,they'd fight but she rarely actually got too angry with him.

She always just tried to be his friend and he couldn't stand that about her. They had a deal, that was all. He was trying to teach her how the real world works, and she just kept coming back with these ridiculous childish notions that the world could be better than it really was. Juubi wanted to prove to her that there was no good in this world that could surpass the darkness in the hearts of her kind. Humans couldn't be trusted. Humans were the real monsters on this Earth.

He growled in his throat.

"Hey, Juubi," Alu said, squatting on her haunches, looking at him with a small head tilt.

"What?" Juubi snapped, bristling. He really didn't like feeling like a god-damn pet around her. He wasn't a pet! She should fear him and his power! She was the only one who wasn't afraid of him. Not once did she ever actually use him for her own selfish gain. He handed her so much power that would make it so easy for her to get what she wanted—and yet she was always using his power to help others in need. He hated that.

He hated her.

"…Thanks again, for lending me your power earlier, to save them…" Alu said, smiling sadly.

Juubi growled. He stalked off to mope in some dark corner, leaving Alu alone with those two doors.

Alu chuckled to herself weakly. That was so like Juubi. He would often take her gratitude and go off and mope with it. It was a bit amusing but she did worry about him. She wanted to prove to him that not all humans were bad. She had tried to show him the good ones, but well, Juubi could be pretty damn stubborn when it came to wanting to see things a certain way.

Alu gazed at the red door. Her heart twisted. What was behind it? Dare she look? No, she had been out of it for some time now. She knew that the A.D.A. would be worried about her being unconscious. She had fainted after all earlier.

She closed her eyes.

Alu's eyes slowly opened to be greeted by bright mid-noon sunlight filtering in through the infirmary window her bed was near. As her blurry vision cleared, she noted that she was alone for the most part. An I.V. Drip was in her arm, and she had some monitors hooked up to regulate her blood pressure, heart rate, and a few other minor things. She wondered how long she'd been out. She knew she had exerted a lot of energy using Juubi and her ability though it hadn't looked like it at the time. She still had to remember that her limit for rewrite seemed to be 3x a day for anything major.

Birds chirped out on the window sill. Alu watched as they dipped and danced around each other. She smiled a little. She wanted to show Juubi that there were still little things like this that made this world feel tolerable to live in.

It seemed she was alone for the time being in the infirmary. Her good hearing however, picked up the sound of a rolling chair sliding on the floor. She noticed the doctor's desk near the opposite side of the room, also hidden behind a white curtain. That curtain was pulled back now, and Alu came face to face with Yosano from across the room. Miss Yosano perked up, the second she saw Alu awake, and looking at her.

"Alu! Glad to see you're awake," she said with a big smile breaking out across her face. She trotted over, heels clacking on the floor. "How are you feeling?"

"Oh, uh, rested?" Alu said, awkwardly. She felt her face warm a bit. She hated feeling like she was imposing.

"I'm glad to hear it! You were unconscious for a few days, so I was worried!" Miss Yosano said with a sigh of relief. "My hunch is that when you used your healing powers, it took a toll on you."

Alu nodded, not denying that had most likely been a part of it. "I appreciate the care," she said, polite.

Miss Yosano beamed. "Think nothing of it."

Alu looked down, feeling something in her hands for the first time. Huh? It was Ranpo's hat? She blinked. "Oh…for some reason I'm still holding this?" She found that both amusing and a bit concerning. Had she let go of that hat at all since she fainted?

"Oh, yes, Ranpo said that's yours," Miss Yosano hummed, waving a hand dismissively.

"I did tell him that I can't accept it…" Alu frowned, looking at the hat in her lap now.

"I know Ranpo," Miss Yosano said, pulling up a chair near Alu and sitting down in it, smiling at her with a small unreadable smile. "In the entire time I've known him, I've never seen him give anything of his away to anyone."

"So, he's bribing me?" Alu asked, quirking a brow, a bit dead pan in tone as she gazed at Miss Yosano.

"Rather than a bribe, I think it's just his way of saying that he cares," Miss Yosano said, still smiling.

Alu gazed at her. "Oh…I guess…" she wasn't convinced. "I really don't think he actually cares…" she said, looking away with some amused exasperation. "If anything, he's just trying to prove his point that he's right about me wanting to join the agency."

"Well, is he wrong?" Miss Yosano asked, tilting her head, her tone gentle and amused.

"I—uh…" Alu blinked. No, he wasn't exactly wrong. But she found that she really didn't want to prove him right. She pouted at Miss Yosano. "If I admit that with him in the room, he's going to have a field day harping on about how he was right," she complained to Miss Yosano. "I don't wanna give him that satisfaction," she pouted, fiddling with the hat.

Miss Yosano giggled. "It sounds to me that what's holding you back is just that. Still, I know that Ranpo can be a lot to handle sometimes… but if he wants you to join, it's only because he sees that your potential lies not with your ability but with what is in here." She pointed to Alu's chest.

Alu made a face. "He's a guy that definitely thinks with his stomach, not his heart," she huffed, rolling her eyes at Miss Yosano. "Are you sure we're talking about the same guy here?"

Miss Yosano chuckled. "It is indeed the same man," she said, and her tone was affectionate if not a bit distant.

Alu quieted. She was mostly poking fun at Ranpo. She didn't think he was a bad guy, just a really weird one.

But the way Miss Yosano was talking, made Alu wonder. "Hey, Miss Yosano?" She asked, gazing at Miss Yosano.

"Yes?" Miss Yosano asked, gazing at Alu, with a smile.

"Do you like Ranpo?" Alu asked bluntly, curious.

Miss Yosano blinked. It was an odd question but she put a black gloved finger to her chin and thought about it. "Well, I suppose," she said, "I mean, he is someone I admire and work with. He's the reason I joined the agency back when I was around your age, actually."

"Ah, well, I will root for you two," Alu said, giving Mis Yosano a thumbs up.

Miss Yosano looked confused. "Root for us?"

"Yeah," Alu said. "I don't get what you see in him, but you know, I can totally ship you two."

"Ship…?" Miss Yosano tilted her head even more confused than before.

"Uh," Alu blinked. "You know, when you see two people as a romantic couple?"

Miss Yosano's face suddenly got very warm as it dawned on her what this girl was implying for her and Ranpo. "Oh, no, you have it all wrong!" She stood up, face turning red. "We're just friends!"

Alu pursed her lips. That is exactly something that someone who has a crush on someone else would totally say… but she could tell she had flustered Miss Yosano and not wanting to accidentally make the situation too awkward just giggled, herself. "Oh, okay," she smiled at Miss Yosano. Whatever you say…

Miss Yosano sensed that Alu didn't actually believe her and she took a deep breath. "Ranpo is just someone who reminded me, a long time ago, that …" her eyes flickered. She smiled sadly, quieting.

Yosano sat in a wheelchair, 14, crying. She didn't deserve to live in this world. Suddenly, a noisy kid pushing her wheelchair spoke up, looking at her with earnest bewilderment. What that boy had said, and how he had given her that metal butterfly clip in her lap, changed Yosano's heart forever.

He was more than just someone to have a crush on.

He was her family. He was someone she honestly could love from the bottom of her heart because the way he cared about her was unconditional. He was a true friend.

He had made the agency her home. She hadn't been able to bring herself back to the world of the living until that day they had met on the roof of the hospital building. While Fukuzawa fought with Mori —her previous boss— about her future, that boy had merely said some words that had changed her entire outlook on life.

Did she love Ranpo?

Miss Yosano didn't know if this love was of the romantic nature. But of course she loved Ranpo. He was someone she considered family.

Alu watched her.

Miss Yosano and her were interrupted by the sound of the infirmary door opening. In, dashed Kousuke. Alu's eyes widened. "Alu! You're awake!" Kousuke beamed at her, quickly running over.

Alu was surprised. "Kousuke?" She rubbed her eyes, thinking she was dreaming.

"Good to see you're awake," a familiar gruff male voice said from the doorway. Alu looked to see Odasaku standing there, but he actually had a small smile on his face. Alu was glad to see that he was able to smile more now. She wondered if everyone had been worried about her after all…

"Uh, yeah," she said sheepishly. "It seems sleeping for days on end after anything exciting is a trend for me," she said, scratching her head.

Kousuke bounced over to her bedside and putting his hands on the side of the bed, he beamed at her. "Guess what!"

Alu blinked. "What?"

"Odasaku let me come with him today while he does some errands and he said that when you're feeling better that I could invite you to come live with us!" Kousuke blabbed excitedly. "We didn't know when you'd wake up but he has given me permission to invite you to live with us! So will you?"

Alu blinked, looking a bit overwhelmed. Odasaku looked apologetic.

"Oh, Kousuke," he said sharply, though more exasperated than anything. "We should let her get her bearings first. Give her some space."

Kousuke pouted. "I want her answer now!" He looked to Alu with eyes sparkling, with excitement.

Alu felt a bit guilty. "Uh…it's a nice offer…" she began but she desperately wanted a way out. It's not that she thought living with Odasaku and his orphans was a bad one. She would like to spend time with all of them, but she always felt uncomfortable in familial settings.

"Oh, sorry Odasaku," Miss Yosano said, smiling at Odasaku. "But I already asked the president for permission to have Alu stay with me for the time being."

Odasaku actually looked relieved; comically both he and Alu seemed to mirror that expression. However, Kousuke was not happy at all. He whirled, looking at Odasaku ready to tantrum. "What? No way! But Odasaku!"

"It's okay," Odasaku said quickly, trying to diffuse the kid's bubbling tantrum, "Alu can still come over, but due to some er…." He looked to Yosano, faltering for a good excuse. Grasping at straws, it felt like he was doing.

"She's on a top secret mission," Miss Yosano said brightly, beaming at Kousuke. "Now, you don't want to be the reason she fails her mission, do you?"

Her smile looked so sweet and yet there was something absolutely terrifying about Miss Yosano's sudden shift in mood. Kousuke gulped. "No…" he finally said, pouting.

Odasaku was grateful and surprised. Wow, it worked. I should probably take some tips… He gave her thumbs up like 'I approve this message' while Kousuke just sighed with a groan and sat on the chair that Yosano was standing up from now.

"Oh yeah," Alu said to Odasaku. "Did you learn anything about that little girl with the black hole ability?"

Odasaku and Miss Yosano exchanged glances.

Alu blinked. Why were they suddenly quiet? She got a sudden nervous feeling. "Guys?" She asked, looking at either of them. Kousuke was oddly quiet too. She looked at him. "Kousuke?"

Kousuke flinched. "I don't know, everyone else is just really quiet so it's making me feel like it's time to be quiet," he whined.

"That girl, she disappeared," Odasaku said finally with a sigh.

Alu's eyes flickered. "Oh…."

"Not long after we got back, I was checking on her," Miss Yosano explained. "And she used her ability to escape."

Alu felt her heart sink. "Right…why didn't Dazai just …cancel it out?"

"Dazai doesn't have a way for me at this time to reach him," Odasaku admitted. "And even if he did, even he couldn't just keep a hand on her 24/7…."

Alu's eyes flickered. "Was she at least, okay?"

Miss Yosano nodded. "Her health was fine," she said, crossing her arms. "It's just a shame that she wouldn't give us the chance to even at least talk with her…"

Alu sighed. Well, it shouldn't be surprising. She just hoped that she could find that little girl again. As for the boys… "How about Tomoe and Ryou? Any word?"

Kousuke brightened up. "Oh! That guy is living with us! Tomoe, I mean! He's super moody though…."

Alu glanced at Odasaku, but she was relieved, smiling at him. "Oh? Tomoe is staying with you?"

Odasaku nodded. "Yeah. He's actually a good kid. Just really grumpy. He doesn't do anything bad though. Not that I've noticed anyhow. He just keeps asking for ramen." He smiled a bit though. That kid was a handful but he had also shown that he was good with kids.

"Yeah, he's good at video games and apparently Sakura really likes him!" Kousuke piped up. "Of course, when she cried that one time he yelled at her, he totally backed off and since then, she's been attached to him!"

Alu giggled. That sounded so cute actually. Tomoe did come off as hostile, but she knew he was a good kid at heart. She knew he had been through a lot in the past and he deserved to have this chance to heal. Alu felt herself warm a bit from relief and she was honestly just so happy to hear that at least, something had gone right from all of this. Tomoe would have a chance to heal with someone like Odasaku caring for him. "I'm glad," she said, smiling tenderly at Kousuke. "And you'll do your best to be a friend to him, right?"

Kousuke blinked. "Well, I mean, sure!" He grinned, puffing out his chest. "After all, heroes gotta be nice to everyone even if they wanna punch them right?"

Odasaku quirked a brow at him.

Alu giggled. She petted Kousuke's head. "Very good!" She said, praising him in English.

Kousuke blinked. "Huh? What? I don't get what you're saying."

Alu let out a small gasp. "Oh, sorry," she said quickly reverting back to Japanese, "I guess I was so happy I started to speak English."

Kousuke just grinned. "I wanna learn it! Is that your own language?"

"Yeah," Alu said, with a nod. "English is my first language."

Kousuke's eyes glinted. "I'll make sure to learn it then! Because I wanna be useful!"

"Useful?" Alu blinked at him.

"Yeah! I told Odasaku that when I'm older I'm gonna work for this place!" Kousuke said confidently. "I don't have an ability, but that doesn't mean I can't still kick that bad guy butt! Right, Odasaku?" He looked to Odasaku, eyes shining.

Odasaku scratched his head, sheepish. "Sure, when you're older, kid." He clarified, sternly.

"What? Alu gets to join and she's not that much older than me! I'm gonna join when I'm old like her!" Kousuke pouted.

"No, you'll join when you're eighteen," Odasaku said with a huff.

Kousuke crossed his arms. "Odasaku, nothing against you, but, I'mma join when I wanna!" He said, brattily.

Miss Yosano and Alu just looked at each other. Miss Yosano cleared her throat. "Well, I'm sure Alu is hungry. Alu?"

"Yeah, sure, I'm hungry…." Alu just gazed at Kousuke. She was really glad to see Kousuke with so much energy, as always. It was really refreshing to see him again. She wanted to see the others too, but she also knew she really had to be careful about becoming so attached. Seeing Kousuke again was already testing her ability to keep them at arm's length as it was.

While she was sad that the little girl was gone, she was at least pleased that Tomoe had found a place with Odasaku. Still, she was worried about Ryou. She looked to the others but with Kousuke there, she didn't want to talk about what she considered work at this point.

Without her saying anything, Odasaku picked up on the fact that she had something she wanted to talk about but couldn't with Kousuke there. "Hey Kousuke, we've said hello. Let's head back now. You'll see Alu again."

Kousuke hopped off the stool, trotting over to Odasaku. "Okay! Be sure to come over sometime!" he waved to Alu, before departing with Odasaku.

Alu was left alone once more with Yosano in the room. Alu took a deep breath, just leaning back against the pillows of her bed. She felt suddenly drained mostly because Kousuke was the kind of kid to take all that energy and absorb it into himself, she could tell. "Any word on Ryou?" She asked Miss Yosano, with a frown.

Miss Yosano hesitated but she finally spoke again. "The truth is, Ryou isn't…in danger." She admitted to Alu.

Alu smiled, relieved. "Really? That's great then! So you found him?" She asked, looking at Miss Yosano eagerly. She didn't realize that Miss Yosano was being a bit evasive.

"I'll let Ranpo explain the rest," Miss Yosano said, taking a deep breath.

Alu caught on that something was going on that wasn't being told. She frowned. With a sigh, she felt restless. She just took out the I.V.'s , used to ditching hospitals by now due to experience and she got out of the bed. She wasn't surprised to see her clothes had been changed again. However, she was grateful that she was just wearing a simple white collared top, long pants, and it looked like Miss Yosano was already grabbing something from under Alu's bed.

Alu watched her with curiosity. Miss Yosano handed her some socks, ankle boots, and a simple black tie like the one she was wearing. Alu blinked. "These are some of my clothes," Miss Yosano admitted. "I hope you don't mind. I realize we're the same height and similar enough in body type…"

Alu gasped. "Oh really? You didn't have to! I mean…I can't exactly pay you back …" she grimaced.

"Don't worry about expenses," Miss Yosano said quickly. "Those clothes are yours now. I assume you want to talk with Ranpo now that you're awake about that boy, Ryou?"

Alu nodded. "Yeah, I guess. Is there a reason you can't tell me anything?" Alu was puzzled and a bit concerned that Miss Yosano was acting like this.

"It's more like, we don't have all the details," Miss Yosano explained. "Since Ranpo made the deduction, I just thought it should be him to relay it to you."

"Uh, well I wouldn't mind a cliff-notes version of it," Alu admitted, scratching her head, with a frown.

"Well, the cliff notes version is that Ryou is actually the one behind your kidnapping," Miss Yosano stated bluntly.

Alu's eyes widened with surprise. "What?" She found that hard to believe. That didn't make sense. No, it wasn't true. "Ranpo's wrong," she found herself saying.