Chapter content: Here in this chapter we have Atsushi, Kunikida, Luca, and Fel, with some death threats, implication of stalking, and mistaken identity.

Atsushi glanced up from the piece of paper in his hand, stopping in his tracks to search around for a street name. Street signs pockmarked the corners of buildings and roads, but none that matched the street he was looking for. A landmark might have been helpful, but the paper gave no hints about where this place was besides an apartment number and street name. While Kunikida had impeccable handwriting and organization, he had no idea what most of the shorthand on this meant.

That was about as much information as he'd been given; Dazai had swiped the folder while Atsushi got Kunikida's handwritten note on the case. Swamped with other work, Kunikida had rushed him out the door before he could ask any questions, and then when he turned around, Dazai had disappeared as well.

So here he was, trying to get there on his own with some vague tips off a bus route map. Dazai had probably gone for the location using another path. A better path. The correct path.

Atsushi sighed, looking at nearby shop signs and ads plastered over windows. "I don't recognize this part of the city…"

If only Dazai's last phone hadn't gone dead after a little trip to the bottom of the river. Then he might have been able to call and ask for directions to wherever he'd vanished to. He sighed in defeat, his shoulders slumping. "I think I'm lost."

Atsushi started to turn around, deciding to try finding his way back to the office, before a flash of black caught his eyes, passing by. He looked over, following the man who had caught his attention.

"Dazai-san?" The black suit was out of the ordinary, but he was the right height, and that curly hair-

Atsushi started walking again, lagging behind the pair with some distance between them as he wondered what Dazai was doing in such fancy getup, and with a girl he didn't recognize, as well. The two wore almost matching clothes. The girl's skirt was definitely too short for any sort of formal appointment, while Dazai's looked... expensive. Atsushi was sure he must have rented or talked that out of someone, because the salary they had at the Agency wasn't enough to cover that and Dazai's meal habits.

He was sure he would have recognized someone with such bright, fire-red hair. Something in the back of his mind suggested that she was part of the Port Mafia, but he dismissed that idea; Dazai did his best to stay out of that business. Their relations with the Port Mafia and illegal activities brushing up against the law- they were strained, to say the least.

"Luca, sei silenzioso."

He thought he wasn't close enough to hear their conversation until he realized it wasn't the sound of the city muffling their words. They were speaking another language. A Western language, if he recognized it right.

"Non guarda adesso, ma c'è qualcuno chi ci segua."

The girl glanced back, and Atsushi quickly looked away from her narrowed eyes. Caught. They knew he was following them now. Hopefully he hadn't just screwed up something for Dazai.

"Se lui è un ladro, non è bravo a discrezione."

"Mi occuperò di lui."

When he glanced to the pair again, another face glared at him. Not Dazai; just a man that looked like his coworker from behind, a flat-top hat in his hands. He put the hat on, turning around as the girl stopped. She didn't move, watching the scene unfold with something of a smile.

Atsushi realized quickly that the man didn't just want to have a calm, reasonable conversation. However, he realized too late to move fast enough, and the man grabbed him roughly by the arm.

"Hey- um, I'm sure this is just a misunderstanding-"

The man swiftly dragged him into a dark alley. Atsushi struggled in his grip, unsure about all of this and what the man planned to do. And the two dressed in such smart, formal fashion - what had he gotten himself into? Atsushi pulled on the tiger's strength, and briefly felt fur sprout and his features turn more feral.

Then it all disappeared.

"La Temperanza," the man said, shooting Atsushi a curious look; something else in that foreign tongue Atsushi didn't understand.

Before he could say anything, he thrust Atsushi into the wall and he saw the flash of the knife before it was pressed against his throat.

"Touch her and die," the man he had thought was Dazai said in rough Japanese. The threat was quick, short and sweet with no room to misunderstand.

Atsushi nodded. "Y-yeah, of course! I just thought you were someone else, I swear!"

The knife lingered for a moment, and then moved, and Atsushi felt he could breathe again. The other man stepped back, his suit barely wrinkled. Those hard purple eyes disappeared under the brim of his hat. The man walked swiftly out of the alley.

Atsushi slumped down the grimy wall, staring at where the alley opened to the street. That man definitely wasn't Dazai, but the ability was certainly the same.

Atsushi nearly jumped out of his skin when his phone rang. He scrambled to get it out of his pocket, and flipped it open. For a long moment, he sat there, letting the real Dazai's voice wash over him.

"-and Kunikida-kun is always so- ….eh? Atsushi-kun, are you there? Helloooooo, Atsushi-kun~!"

"...yeah, I'm here. Sorry about that, Dazai-san."

The city of Yokohama was a world of new experiences and sights for Felicità, but when they walked into a small bar, the smell of coffee was as deep and rich as the smells back home.

She chose an empty table by the window, slipping into the booth. Luca placed her shopping bags on the table before heading to the counter to order drinks.

Felicità stared out the window for a moment, taking in the casual flow of the people and traffic outside and pulled a small box out of one of the bags. She picked at the tape and pried it open to get the sleek device out, and then she turned her new phone on. To her relief, it gave her the choice to set it up in Italian. As much confidence as she had in her Japanese, it was nice to not have to think too hard on this foreign device. At least until she was a little more used to communicating outside of her native language.

Luca soon returned with their drinks and pastries, balancing it all on a plate. Despite the glances from the barista behind the counter, terrified of the potential fate of the bar's ceramic plates and mugs, he handled them fine and the barista visibly exhaled a sigh of relief when Luca put them down without incident. Felicità couldn't help but smile as she lifted her drink, feeling a flutter in her heart as a swell of pride in her attendant.

"Are you enjoying yourself, milady?"

Felicità set her new phone aside, the screen pulsing as it loaded for the first time. "After the flight and a nap, yes, I think I am," she said. "It's so different from Regalo here. Do you think home would be more like Japan if the Family didn't keep Regalo so isolated?"

"It would definitely be different," Luca considered, "but the Family would still be there. It would certainly be a lot of work for you if we loosened restrictions on foreign imports and tourism."

"That's true. Japan is busier than Regalo. There's still the sea and coffee, but I think home is a lot calmer." Felicità laughed. "Japan feels so cool and futuristic."

"Well, milady, what do you think of futuristic coffee?"

"It's great! It has a different subtle flavor to it than I'm used to."

"Is it? I'll have to ask what blend they use, then."

"Scusa."

Their conversation was interrupted by a man in glasses, a notebook tucked under his arm. "Sorry, but did I hear you two are from Regalo?" His Italian was hesitant, dipping into the language with care.

The two exchanged a glance. "We are," Felicità answered. "We're on vacation right now."

"I have to say, you're the first Italian voice we've heard all day besides each other," Luca commented, gesturing for the man to join them at the table. "Where did you learn Italian?"

"It started with Latin in school and it went from there," the man explained, sitting down across the table from Felicità. He placed his notebook on the table. Felicità wasn't the best with written Japanese, so she filed that kanji away in her mind to look up later. "My name is Doppo Kunikida. What brings you two to Japan? I read that Regalo limits travel out of and into the island."

Felicità nodded and took another sip of her coffee, letting Luca be the social one even as she followed the conversation.

"I'm Luca, and this is my fiancée, Felicità. We're on vacation before our wedding back in Regalo."

Kunikida's eyes widened. "You're getting married? Congratulations!"

Luca smiled. "It's nice here in Japan. But busier than what we're used to," he said, echoing Felicità's earlier sentiments.

"I can imagine," Kunikida said. His Japanese accent was thick, but the Italian was refreshing to Felicità's ears. She tried a bite of the cake Luca had picked out for her. "Regalo is controlled by the Arcana Mafia family, isn't it? To be so cut off from the rest of the world…"

Luca laughed. "We still have the internet and plenty of tourism. Phones are a little expensive, though." Hence Felicità's new toy. She would finish setting it up and play with it later. "Are you thinking of visiting Regalo sometime?"

"I would love to visit," Kunikida said. "It would be an amazing experience. I've read some about it, and it sounds like a historical reenactment. But they don't allow anyone with abilità on the island."

Luca nearly dropped his mug.

Felicità put her fork on her plate, sitting up a little straighter.

Kunikida looked between them. "Abilità is the right word, isn't it?"

Luca nodded. "It is…"

"You're an ability user?" Felicità asked.

"...yes," Kunikida said, his smile falling as well as his eyes.

Felicità couldn't help herself, reaching for her power. Gli Amanti answered immediately. She had to know his thoughts, fearing what menacing power this man could have.

"I work upstairs, actually-"

Kunikida's voice faded away and a shout of other voices filled Felicità's mind. Answer, fear, screaming… and gunshots. They drowned out the sounds of the bar and she could see Luca shooting her worried glances.

All she could hear, though, were Japanese voices, going too fast and laughing over each other too much for her to understand more than snatches. But a clear thought cut through the chaos, speaking straight from a deep affection-

"All of them just want to help people."

Felicità blinked, and the buzz of the bar came back to her ears as if she'd been underwater and just come to the surface. Luca's voice, clear as day, pulled her back fully to reality.

"We've never met any ability users before, actually," Luca admitted, tugging at one of his gloves in almost a nervous twitch. If she had been lost in her power for a few seconds more, she had no doubt he would have put a stop to that. "And your office is just upstairs…? Sorry if we offended you. This is our first time outside of Regalo."

"I understand. Abilities can be scary sometimes. But we're not all scary people." Kunikida nodded, and picked up his notebook again and stood. "I should be getting back to work, if you'll excuse me. And please, don't hesitate to stop by while you're in Yokohama."

With a few goodbyes, he left the two alone at the table.

Luca glanced to Felicità, and immediately relaxed at seeing she was more alert. He took a bite of his tart before commenting, "He was nice. Don't you think so, milady?"

"He is." Felicità stared at the door Kunikida had disappeared behind. "What was he saying about his work? I think I reacted too quickly. His heart took me off guard."

"He works in an office upstairs for something called the Armed Detective Agency," Luca supplied, adjusting his gloves. "It's a private detective firm made up of almost entirely ability users."

"That's different. I can't believe we just met an ability user outside of the Family."

"Abilities are useful, especially in our line of work. The Port Mafia no doubt has more than a few of them, and we shouldn't go in prepared. We already know their boss is one."

Felicità nodded. "We'll just have to be on our guard tonight."

Author's Notes

Did you scroll down here for translations? They're just talking about how Luca noticed a cutpurse is following them.