Kyandi: And we're right back.

Dimir: You had a little too much fun making me seem like a child.

Kyandi: No, I didn't. A lot of people like chocolate as much as you do.

Dimir: You mean you?

Kyandi: Okay, listen here, science has actually proven that chocolate in the morning improves brain function, so leave me alone.

Dimir: Well, yes, a little chocolate...not a whole box.

Kyandi: It wasn't a whole box...I gave a piece to my mom.

Dimir: Kyandi-sama...

Kyandi: Don't "Kyandi-sama" me. Anyway, everyone enjoy and review.

Dimir: Kyandi-sama does not own Bungou Stray Dogs. Apparently, nor does she own a scale.

Kyandi: Okay, now you're pushing it.

Dimir: You mean like you're pushing your waist band?

Kyandi: Zip it!

Chapter 5 Dimir's Day Out

"What is going on...?"

Atsushi couldn't believe his eyes. When he had arrived at the Agency office, he had been fearing the worst. After all he had gone through with Akutagawa and Kyoya the day before, he had had been expecting everyone at the office to reject Kyoya because of the people the Port Mafia had forced her to kill. Instead, he walked into the office to find his co-workers dressing Kyoya up in cute outfits. The current one was a maid outfit.

"I'm so glad they don't do that to me."

Atsushi, with a start, spun on the spot, heaving a sigh of relief when he found Dimir standing behind him. Today's outfit of choice was a pale blue, cold shoulder dress with a high neck, that fit her like a glove from her collar bones right down to her hips where it suddenly flared out to hang down to just above her knees. Black boots took over from there. She finished the look with her usual sleeveless trench coat and blue biker mitts.

At the moment, she stood in the door way, a bag from a bakery in one hand, a tray of coffee cups in the other, and her eyes focused on her co-workers as they treated Kyoya like a doll.

"Might be best to put a stop to this." Dimir suggested.

Atsushi agreed and, together, they managed to get their co-workers to break up their dress-up party, though Yosano and Naomi wanted to dress Dimir up too. Something the girl insisted they save for another time.

She was already sure that she was going to be in trouble once the Director arrived, as it was.

Once they had Kyoya changed and everyone was sitting down, Atsushi got straight to the point. Dimir took the chance to pass out the baked goods and coffee she had brought with her.

"How did this happen?" he asked.

"Well, she looks good in everything!" Junichiro remarked.

"Dimir would too!" Naomi insisted.

"No...That's not the point." Atsushi said, before turning to Kunikida who was the only one who hadn't been dressing Kyoya up.

"Don't give me that look, Atsushi. I've tried to stop them." Kunikida told him, before his eyes caught on Dimir. "As for you...where the hell did you get off to?!"

Dimir threw her hands up in the air as he glared at her. She gave him a sheepish smile as the others focused in on her as well.

"How about we leave that conversation for when the Director gets here. Instead...I brought your favorite tea." Dimir said, finishing a thermos out of the bag hanging from her shoulder. "I made it fresh this morning, myself. It's still warm and I brought fresh made biscuits and cookies, too."

The tea worked in distracting Kunikida...for the moment. With the man distracted, Dimir retreated to her desk, so not to continue drawing attention to herself. Atsushi took the chance to voice a concern of his own.

"Is this okay? She's still a murderer." Atsushi said, referring to Kyoya.

"There could be trouble." Junichiro admitted.

"Tanizaki and everyone here may not have a problem with that, but someone as law-abiding as Ranpo-"

Atsushi was cut off as Ranpo came charging into the office after heading to the store to buy treats for Kyoya. Watching Ranpo as he and Kyoya fawned over a particular piece of candy that Ranpo favored, Atsushi got the impression of two grade school friends sharing their snacks.

"Come to think of it, why is she at the Detective Agency?" Atsushi asked.

"I summoned her."

Atsushi jolted, whipping around to find Fukuzawa behind him, the Director as intimidating as ever. Out of the corner of his eyes, Atsushi caught sight of Dimir sinking in her seat. She knew she was going to be in trouble the moment Fukuzawa focused on her. Which was just a matter of time. For now, he was distracted by Kyoya.

"Sir, that's the girl I reported about yesterday." Kunikida told his boss.

"What is the status of the military police and the city police?" Fukuzawa asked.

"They have split into several teams to investigate, but her identity is still safe due to the mafia's discretion. It is only a matter of time when her name will be officially listed as wanted." Kunikida reported.

"But it would be a different matter with me as you guarantor." Fukuzawa said, turning to look at Kyoya.

Kyoya stood there for a moment, silent before she looked up at Fukuzawa.

"Please allow me to stay here. I will do anything." Kyoya said.

"But...it's not that simple." Atsushi remarked.

"Don't even think about it. It's not because you are ex-mafia, nor is it because we have nothing for you to do." Kunikida told Kyoya, speaking over Atsushi. "Just give up. The world is not so tender."

"He's right. The mafia will find you sooner or later if you stay here. Why don't you hide somewhere further away?" Atsushi asked.

Dimir doubted that hiding would do Kyoya any good if the mafia really wanted her that bad. From what she had seen as she had gone through the building she broke into, she could tell that it was an organization with a very wide reach. Hiding would only prolong the problem and make the end result that much worse. Her best option was to stand her ground and find strong and loyal allies to back her.

"I...can't do anything but kill. That's what he said." Kyoya remarked lowly. "It might be so, but I want to prove him wrong."

Atsushi stared at the determined look on Kyoya's face. Dimir only had to look at his face to tell that he had just had his heart strings tugged. He would vouch for Kyoya now, put himself on the line as well. And he proved it when he bowed to Fukuzawa.

"I also beg of you." Atsushi said.

The look Fukuzawa gave the two was fierce and, if Dimir was being honest, scary. He glared down at the two, Kyoya meeting his eyes and giving him the cutest version of puppy dog eyes Dimir had ever seen. It only took her giving him that look and begging, "Pretty please." before he gave.

"Hired." Fukuzawa said, much to Kunikida's surprise and outrage. "Atsushi, I'm leaving her to you."

Dimir wanted to laugh at the look on Kunikida's face, but Fukuzawa whipped around then, zeroing in on her. It took all she had not to sink under her desk with a scared little "Epp!". She knew he was angry, or at least displeased, when he looked at her.

"Dimir...come here." he demanded.

Yep, she was dead.

Getting to her feet, fearing he would fire her and throw her back out on the streets, she approached him. Scared she might be, but she squared her shoulders and refused to cower under his gaze. When she stood before him, looking up at him, she watched as his mouth thinned as he pressed his lips together in disappointment.

And, to her surprise, that stung.

"You were given orders not to leave the office alone and yet you did." he said.

"Yes, sir, I did." she confirmed.

"You disobeyed me."

"Yes, sir, I did."

"Why?" he asked.

Well, if she was going to get in trouble because of him, then she was going to rat out Dazai. If he couldn't bother to show up to work and explain what had happened, then she was going to have to do it herself. After all, she couldn't withhold the information. It would only make Fukuzawa angrier with her. Something she really didn't need at that moment.

"I received a message from Osamu, telling me that he had been captured by the Port Mafia and listing an address. Between Ao's shield being able to turn me invisible for a short time and Pinku's ability to put others to sleep, he figured I had the best chance of sneaking into a Port Mafia building to rescue him. So I went." Dimir admitted.

"You did what?!" Kunikida yelled, his teeth grinding as his anger got the best of him.

"Were you successful?" Fukuzawa asked, holding up a hand to cut off anything else Kunikida could have yelled at her.

"I was. Osamu is home, safe and sound. But...but there's a problem, sir." Dimir admitted.

"A problem?" Fukuzawa asked.

Here, Dimir hung her head, bowing deeply to him in repentance, though, really, the problem was thanks to Dazai's big mouth.

"I'm so sorry, sir, but...a Port Mafia executive now knows I have multiple abilities."

Silence fell over the room as everyone stared at Dimir in horror. If the mafia knew she had more than one ability at her disposal, it could spell out the beginning of a war between the two organizations just to see who would end up with Dimir on their side in the end. It was a war that, given the recent clash between members of the two organizations, could be disastrous for everyone involved. It was definitely not something they could afford at that moment.

Fukuzawa stared down at the back of Dimir's head as she refused to straighten up from her position. Something didn't exactly click here. He knew Dimir was good at guarding her secret and that she would never be so reckless with the information. There was something else to this.

"Did you show them more than one ability?" Fukuzawa asked her.

"...No, sir." she replied.

If she didn't show them that she had more than one ability then they could only have the information if she, or someone who knew, had told them.

"Did you tell them?" he asked.

"...No, sir."

If she didn't tell them...that only left one option and if he was right then Dazai was in for one hell of a punishment when he finally came back into the office because, regardless of his strategic reasons why, he had put Dimir in danger.

"Dimir...did Dazai tell them?" Fukuzawa asked.

Silence.

Dimir didn't raise her head, but she didn't answer either. She wouldn't lie to him and tell him no, but, despite her really wanting to rat him out, Dimir couldn't make herself confirm that it had been Dazai. She might have a spiteful thought now and then, but she wasn't a spiteful person. That being said, her silence was answer enough.

Kunikida cursed Dazai while the others shared looks. All of them knew that Dazai had to have a reason because, for all his foolishness and supposed idiocy, the man never did anything like that without a reason behind it. It didn't excuse the danger he had now put Dimir in, though, they were sure the girl wouldn't be angry at him, one bit, even if danger came knocking on her door.

"I'm so sorry, Director." Dimir added. "I was only trying to help a co-worker and friend."

Fukuzawa knew that, while she had disobeyed his orders, he couldn't really be too angry at her. She had only been trying to help a person in need, not realizing that she had become another chess piece in Dazai's ever-continuing game. She would, of course, get a stern lecture, but, for now, they needed to focus on what precautions they could take to assure she would be alright.

Heaving a sigh, Fukuzawa laid a hand on top of Dimir's head, giving it a pat.

"I'll lecture you later. For now, we have to concern ourselves with precautions. It would not be as easy to get someone like you back as it was to get Atsushi and Dazai back." Fukuzawa remarked.

If he knew the Port Mafia boss like he thought he did, then he knew the man would never let go of someone like Dimir once he got his hands on her. They needed to nip it in the bud while they could.

"If that idiot really did tell them, then she can't continue to stay with a non-ability user member of the Agency. It would put the both of them in danger." Kunikida reasoned.

At this, Dimir raised her head, her wide eyes landing on Kunikida. Part of her really didn't want to leave Haruno's apartment. She liked living with the woman and her cat and it really felt like home. On the other hand, she really didn't want to put Haruno in any danger because of her. They could tell her concern for her friend just from the panicked look on Dimir's face. Fukuzawa, his hand still on Dimir's head, gave her head another pat.

"Do not worry, Dimir. We will handle this." Fukuzawa told her before turning to head for his office, calling for Haruno.

Dimir watched him disappear into the office before she deflated, sinking onto a nearby couch. The girl looked like a puppy denied their favorite chew toy, almost. Naomi claimed the seat next to her, laying a hand on her shoulder.

"It'll be alright, Dimir. The Director will handle this, you'll see." Naomi told her.

Dimir heaved a sigh, giving Ranpo a smile when he offered her some of his candy, giving her a peppermint flavored lollipop. She thanked him, taking the treat so not to seem rude. Even as she stuck the treat in her mouth, she heaved a sigh. Sinking back into the couch, she rolled the lollipop around in her mouth.

She really hoped Fukuzawa could handle it. While she didn't like the idea of moving out of Haruno's apartment when it had become the closest thing to a home she'd had in years, if it meant Haruno would be safer, then that was what she would do.

She just hoped it was all unnecessary.

-0-0-0-0-

"Damn him!"

Another day, another morning of Nakahara Chuya being angry because of Dazai's continued annoyance in his life. Since his escape and the information he had shared with him, Chuya had debated with himself on whether or not to tell his boss about the girl Dazai had called to his rescue.

Nabokov Dimir.

Chuya paused in his stomping down the sidewalk as the girl was brought to the forefront of his mind. His mind instantly called forth the sweet, no-grudges-held smile the girl had given him as she thanked him for walking away from killing Dazai.

It was like the girl didn't even know how to hate another person.

Chuya knew he should tell his boss about Dimir. Someone with access to multiple abilities was a dangerous person indeed. One the Port Mafia could benefit from having on their side. That being said, he knew that Mori would call an attack on the Agency just to get his hands on Dimir if he knew what the girl was capable of.

Chuya was sure Dimir would lose her smile if that happened.

Catching himself thinking that, Chuya gave his head a shake. That shouldn't matter to him. All that should matter was the benefit of the mafia. That, and only that. Nothing else. Especially not the happiness of some girl that worked for the Armed Detective Agency.

Grumbling to himself, Chuya continued down the sidewalk, pulling his phone out to check the time. Technically, he had a day off, though he could still be called in to work if something came up. It was nearing lunch and he was starting to get hungry. Maybe it was time to stop thinking about Dimir and Dazai and find himself something to eat. He looked up, searching the shops lining the street, in search of food.

Just then, as if summoned by the mere thought of her name, his eyes found Dimir.

The girl, dressed in a ruffled, black skirt, a halter top the same color as his hair, black stockings, and grey ankle boots, was standing in front of a shop, peering into the window. There was a smile on her face as she scanned the window, the girl clearly being amused by something on the other side.

Curious, Chuya stuffed his hands into his pockets and approached her. He found her peering into a pet store, watching a couple of puppies on display as they play fought over a bone-shaped, chew toy. When his shadow fell over the window, Dimir turned, looking up at him.

It baffled him when she instantly smiled at the sight of him.

"Oh! Good morning, Chuya." she greeted brightly. "Or should it be "good afternoon" by now?"

Chuya frowned, wondering what was wrong with this girl. Usually, if a member of the Port Mafia and a member of the Armed Detective Agency met each other out in the city, it almost always ended in a fight of some kind. Dimir wasn't hostile in the least.

"You're frowning. What's wrong?" Dimir asked, blinking in confusion as she leaned forward to peer up at his face.

"You are aware that we're enemies and, yet, you just acted like I was an old friend." he retorted.

For a moment, she merely blinked at him. Then a bright smile lit her face and she let out a truly amused, chiming laugh. Grinning, she gave her head a shake, as if she was laughing at him being ridiculous when he was being serious.

"Enemies?! But you've done nothing to me, nor I to you! How does that make us enemies?" she asked.

"We're from opposite sides! You're Armed Detective Agency and I'm Port Mafia!" he barked back.

"And?"

Chuya stared at her, eyes wide and expression alight with disbelief. She said that one word as if she truly couldn't see his point in the conversation. Seeing his look, she grinned, eyes shining brightly. Raising a hand, she hid her smile and a small laugh behind it.

"Life is life, Chuya. It makes no difference if that life is Armed Detective Agency, Military Police, politician, civilian, or Port Mafia. I'm not going to begrudge a person simply because of their way of life." she told him simply, turning and walking off down the street.

Intrigued and still very confused about the girl, Chuya followed her, falling into step beside her. Dimir strolled along, hands clasped behind her back while she smiled at those who passed them.

"You're strange." Chuya told her.

"You think?" she asked, waving to a mother and her child as they passed.

"Yeah."

"Well, I suppose it's in how you want to look at it."

Chuya turned his eyes to her face. She was still smiling happily, clearly not the least bit offended by what he said. He was starting to wonder if there was anything he could say to offend her. Probably not, but that was what made her interesting. It was also, he realized, the reason behind how she was able to deal with Dazai without ever batting an eyelash.

When he didn't say anything in response, she turned to look up at him, grinning when she found him staring at her with open confusion and befuddlement. She found it funny to see him looking at her that way.

"Let me guess...you've never met someone with my mind set, have you?" she asked.

"No." he retorted.

"That's alright. I guess I'm really not like a lot of other people. I don't like to judge others until I've gotten to know them myself, and I don't like to look at hardships as something completely bad." Dimir told him.

"What do you mean?" he asked.

"Well, while it is true when people say that first impressions are the strongest, they are most often wrong. No one can fully grasp another person's personality in just one meeting. Because of that, I don't like listening to the opinions others have of people I've never met before. Take what Osamu told me of you after we parted ways. You don't seem like a "horrible, arrogant, yapping chihuahua with an inferiority complex" to me." Dimir replied.

Chuya turned to her, one eye twitching as she quoted what Dazai had said to her after they had escaped from the Port Mafia building. Dimir just smiled back at him as he fought not to lose his temper. After all, she hadn't been the one to call him that, but rather Dazai.

"I'm gonna kill him..." Chuya muttered lowly.

"Osamu's opinions aside, the statement, itself, was a bit of a contradiction. I don't see how someone can be arrogant and have an inferiority complex, at the same time." Dimir continued. "But my point is...you don't seem so horrible to me. If I had listened to him, I would have ended up judging you all wrong."

Chuya's temper cooled as she talked, but he was still annoyed with Dazai. If Dazai had said that to Dimir, he'd hate to hear what he had said to everyone else he had come in contact with.

"Thanks?" he said, posing it as a question. "And what did you mean by the hardships part?"

"There's a quote I once heard, that goes like this, "Some people-and I am one of them-hate happy ends. We feel cheated. Harm is the norm. Doom should not jam. The avalanche stopping in its tracks a few feet above the cowering village behaves not only unnaturally but unethically.". Simply put, life isn't real if there's no bad moments. It's human nature to face adversity. Sure, I might end up facing more of it in my life than a normal person, but I choose to have the good grace to accept it as the life lesson it is."

"So...you think bad situations are a good thing?" he asked, confused.

"No. I think learning from those bad situations, is a good thing. What kind of life can you live if you're always letting bad things stop you in your tracks?" Dimir asked him before something caught her eyes.

Grinning, she sped up and hurried off ahead of him, towards a stall where a man was running a small raffle. Chuya followed her, catching up to her as she scanned the banner displaying the possible winnings from the raffle. The top prize was a box of expensive and luxurious, foreign chocolates.

"You, young lady, would you like to try your luck?" the man asked.

"Sure!" Dimir replied.

Chuya stood back, watching as Dimir happily paid for a ticket in order to give the raffle a spin. Personally, he didn't get these things. Nine times out of ten, no one won. Dimir, though, seemed more than happy to give her luck a try. He stood off to the side, hands on his hips, watching her as she gave the wheel a spin.

To her disappointment, she didn't win anything except a box of tissues that everyone got when they didn't win, but her disappointment didn't stay long as she turned to look at Chuya.

"You should try too." she told him.

"Why? It's a waste of time." he told her.

"Humor me. Maybe your luck is better than mine. Let's see." she told him, smiling at him.

Grumbling to himself, he stepped forward to give it a try. Dimir leaned around him, watching him as he gave the wheel a spin, lowly asking himself why he was doing this. The marble that came bouncing out of the wheel when it stopped, to Chuya's surprise, was the winning marble.

"Congratulations, sir! You've won our top prize!" the man told Chuya, handing over the ten pound box of chocolates.

Chuya stared down at the box, unsure what to do with it. He wasn't much of a sweets person, to be honest. He had only done the raffle to, as she put it, humor Dimir and hadn't expected to actually win. Turning, he found Dimir right beside him, staring at the box of chocolates with an intense gaze.

"What?" he asked.

"That's a really expensive brand of chocolates. A box that big would cost a lot. Especially if it's an import. And I've heard that it taste really good." Dimir remarked.

"Is it?" Chuya asked.

He didn't really know anything about candy or it's brands. Dimir, on the other hand, seemed to be completely transfixed by the candy. He could practically see the desire to have the chocolate, in her eyes. He had no doubt that she wanted the chocolate. Had him wondering what she would do if he gave her the chocolates. After all, he had no use for them.

"Here, you have them." he said, holding the box out to her.

In that instant, Dimir's face lit up with the brightest expression he had seen yet. She took the box with a big smile, planted a chaste kiss on his cheek, and danced away from him with the box cradled in her arms.

"Thank you!" she cheered.

Chuya didn't even know where to start. He could start with the fact that she seemed to be just a little bit too over joyed about a mere box of chocolates, or he could just jump right to the fact that she kissed him! Chaste kiss on the cheek or not, it was still a kiss.

He decided to go with the one that would make him seem less like a befuddled, little boy getting his first kiss.

"You don't have to be so happy. It's just chocolate." he told her as he followed after her.

"Maybe so, but after being homeless the majority of my life and unable to even afford food half the time, chocolate is like the highest quality luxury for me. I wasn't able to eat it even once when I was living on the streets." she told him.

Chuya paused for a moment, his eyes turning back to her face as she happily read the box to see what kinds of chocolates were inside. So...she had lived on the street most of her life. He was sure that meant that she was an orphan, but it wasn't something he could really just come out and ask her.

"Now that the Agency has taken me in, I try to eat it as often as I can. You know, you should never take the little things for granted." Dimir added, pulling his attention back to their conversation. "Anyway, in exchange for the chocolates, let's go for lunch. My treat."

The talk of food had his stomach growling, Dimir grinning when she could actually hear it.

"You might regret that offer." he told her.

"Oh, please. You can't possibly eat more than Atsushi." Dimir retorted.

"The man-tiger?"

"Yeah. I swear, no matter how much he eats, it's like that boy's stomach is always forever empty. It takes forty bowls of tea on rice to even come close to filling him up for a short while. Besides...I'm good at saving my money. I think my wallet can handle whatever appetite you might have." Dimir told him.

And that was how Chuya found himself sitting across the table from the Armed Detective Agency's second newest member. He had to admit, Dimir wasn't like what he was expecting. She was far more relaxed and accepting than her co-workers and it didn't bother her, in the least, to be seen in public with him. In fact, she took him to one of her favorite restaurants, the staff greeting her as if they saw her every day. She greeted them all in return, a smile on her face.

Though the staff gave him weary looks, as if they knew who he was, they didn't say anything, not wanting to upset a perfectly happy Dimir. Chuya turned his eyes from the staff to Dimir as she scanned a menu, the box of chocolates sitting on the bench beside her.

"Let me guess, you come here often." he remarked.

"Almost every day, if I can. Mostly for lunch, though. My roommate and I cook dinner and breakfast together." Dimir replied.

"Your roommate not going to miss you tonight?" Chuya asked.

"I texted her to let her know that I was going to grab dinner out since I was out on errands." Dimir replied before sitting her menu down. "I do have a question for you, though."

"What?" Chuya asked, instantly suspicious.

"Why haven't you told your boss about me having more than one ability?"

Chuya looked up at her in surprise. Her expression was serious, the smile gone. He didn't remember saying anything even closely regarding that.

"What makes you think I haven't?" he asked.

"Oh, Chuya..." Dimir gave him a smile. "If you had, I would have been snatched off the streets at least once of the four times I've passed Mafia members today."

Chuya blinked at her as she grinned back at him. She had based her guess on the fact that none of the four mafia members she passed, tried to make a grab at her. Did she really have that much faith in the goodness of men? It baffled him, meeting someone like her, but, at the same time, he felt a little bit...impressed with her. She was strange, but she apparently had a good heart.

And a naively trusting one.

Chuya looked away from her smile, refusing to look her in the eyes. How could he look her in the eyes at the moment? It was just too embarrassing.

"I don't know what you're talking about." he insisted.

Dimir let out a single, low laugh, but she didn't press the matter. She didn't see Chuya as being the type to take teasing or pressing very lightly. Instead, she ordered her food and let him do the same. They ate in silence, Chuya glancing up, now and then, to watch her. After Dimir paid for the meal, they parted ways at the door.

"Goodbye, Chuya. Thank you for my chocolates and be safe getting back!" she called to him, waving when he turned to look at her.

Chuya watched as she gave him one last wave, turned and took off down the street, her hair trailing behind her as she wove her way through people on the sidewalk. Chuya didn't really know what to think of Dimir, but he did know one thing.

She was one weird person.

END

Kyandi: And that's why I said you're odd.

Dimir: Is it really so odd to give people a chance?

Kyandi: Normally, no, but you take it to a new extreme.

Dimir: I wonder why that is...

Kyandi: Because I made you that way?

Dimir: Ding, ding, we have a winner.

Kyandi: It can be...endearing. I just thought I would warn them that you're a little odd and that's why you were so comfortable with Chuya.

Dimir: I would rather be odd then wrongly judge someone.

Kyandi: That's my girl. Anyway, I need sleep, so everyone enjoy and review.

Dimir: We'll return as soon as possible.

Kyandi: Bye-bye!