Okay, so number one of the side stories, divided into two chapters like the rest of the series, and yes: These are centered around the team, but Minako mostly. First up, this episode comes between Episodes 14 and 15, where we get the revelation of her father's secret job and history, and... let's just say this is definitely gonna rattle her and everything she knew beforehand, but a little action is needed first. So let's get going on this! (lets the Fang Memory jump on my shoulder as it roars a bit before it jumps at the screen and slashes it)

Disclaimers: I don't own Kamen Rider W or Fuuto PI as they are productions from Toei and Studio Kai, but I do own any OCs I make.

(My name is Minako Sakurada, also known as Kamen Rider Skull. After the crazy excitement during the Christmas holidays, everyone close to me in the detective agency knows my identity now and I'm actually happy I don't have to hide my secret around them. Although, my dad and mom haven't heard about my secret since I left the house a year and a half ago, and... I hope they don't find out...)

As the episode starts, we see Minako walking down the street to the office, smiling a bit as she enjoyed the crisp, cool air of the morning and carried some coffee back to the others, humming to herself.

A couple of kids passed her as they were having a snowball fight and one snowball nearly struck her as she dodged it, looking at the one who had thrown it. "Careful there!"

The boy smiled and nodded. "Sorry, miss!"

She grinned back and continued walking, thinking about the events of the past few weeks: 'The bosses and I are really getting along better since I revealed myself. At first, things were as turbulent as a hurricane, but now I think the waters are calming down amazingly. Sho-kun wants me to teach him a little more about how to be a good detective, Phillip wants me to help him with some research on the Sonozaki family, and Aki-chan and I are doing some sisterly bonding while I tell her about her papa. But I also still visit the Sonozaki family on occasions, helping Wakana with her radio show, Mr. Sonozaki with his museum as an assistant manager, and Saeko and Kirihiko while I learn about how the Gaia Memories are made without Phillip. Although, now knowing that Kirihiko knows my identity without Wakana saying anything, he's looking at me more often whenever I'm near him. It's like a sudden storm came on in his mind that's solely focused on me and nothing else. What could that even mean for my friendly relationship with him?'

She was so wrapped up in her thoughts that she didn't even notice she was back at the front door of the office until she ran into the door with a smack. "Itai!"

She stumbled back, holding her head in slight pain and looking up as she saw Akiko opening the door with a chuckle.

"Got lost in thought again, eh?" The brunette helped her godsister inside.

"A little bit." Minako admitted sheepishly as she passed Akiko her coffee. "Cinnamon spice latte, extra sugar."

Akiko took it with a happy smile. "Thank you."

The blunette walked over to the boys and passed them their coffees. "Black with light cream for the boss and Phillip, your blueberry lavender cappuccino (A/N: No joke, that's actually a real cappuccino flavor that my local gas station/convenience store sells, and it's really tasty), extra whipped cream."

Shotaro nodded to her in gratitude. "Thanks, Rook."

Phillip smiled. "Much appreciated." He sipped his drink and nodded a bit. "The flavor is quite aromatic and sweet, but it compliments the bitterness of the coffee well. Quite thrilling."

Minako nodded a bit. "I actually like that flavor every once in a while. It really perks me up." She sipped some of her coffee as she listened to Wakana's show: "It's time for 'Fuuto's Mystery Tour!' This request comes from radio name Utskyo. 'Princess Wakana, I have a really good mystery for you. Lately many people have been getting attacked by a scorpion-like monster. The being strikes their targets swiftly with a sting from its tail and it disappears just as suddenly afterwards. I saw it one night when I was walking around and I knew no one else but you would believe me.' Wow, that's so sweet, Utskyo! But this truly is a good mystery! A scorpion-like monster? I wonder if he's a good guy targeting bad people?"

Minako looked at the trio in surprise and turned the radio off. "A scorpion-like monster?"

"It must be another Dopant. That's the only explanation I can think of." Phillip said casually.

Shotaro nodded a bit and stroked his chin thoughtfully. "I think the boss told me about this one when I was the rookie. Although I don't remember the specifics of the two that did it, I do remember their code names: Caucasus and Scorpio."

Minako looked at him and made a face. "Hercules and Scorpio? Hmm..." Why did those sound familiar to her?

The bell rang at that moment and the others looked over curiously, Akiko getting up and walking to the entrance, opening it up. "Welcome to the Narumi Detective Agency. How can we help you?"

At the entrance stood an older looking man who seemed to be casual and kind. "It's been a while, Akiko. Is Minako here?"

Minako looked up in surprise and spoke at the same time as the brunette: "Otōsan?!/Mr. Sakurada??"

Shotaro and Phillip looked at each other in shock and spoke in unison: "Huh?!"

Minako went to the door and glared at her father. "What are you doing here, Dad? You know I left home eighteen months ago."

Osamu looked at Minako and nodded a bit. "I know, but I need your help. More specifically... I'm hiring you and the team for a case."

That got everyone's attention. "Eh??"

W-B-X crime and the city

Mata dare ka ga Totsuzen doa wo tataku

Jiken no yokan "Welcome to Windy City"

Kono machi ni wa Namida wa niawanai ze

Yami ni hisomu keyword

Mitsukedasou! (Mitsukedasou!)

Hitori de wa todokanai yume

(Kensaku suru mugen no archive!

Kioku toiu umi e to dive!)

Kimi to nara kanaerareru, Half and Half!

(W-Boiled Extreme!)

W-B-X!

Futari no body and soul!

(Hoka ni nai sa only! Tsumari ainori)

Hitotsu ni

W-B-X!

Saikou no paatonaa,

Deau toki (Deau toki)

Kiseki okoru (so we can make it!)

Daburu wo sagase!

(W-B-X crime and the city)

(The Venomous Sigma/Twin Reapers)

It wasn't long before Minako and Shotaro were on the case, the duo searching around the city for information about their missing person as Minako made her inner monologue: 'My father, Osamu Sakurada. As far as I know, he's simply a regular businessman who does mechanical work for the civilians. But he certainly gave me and the boss a mystery.'

(Flashback)

"Inaba Shigaretsu." Shotaro set the photo (which contained a picture of Osamu and a Japanese American looking man) down as he looked at Osamu. "You're sure he's back from the dead?"

The elder man nodded. "Yes. It was a few days ago when I'd seen him last, but... he seemed more out of it than normal. Almost like he wanted to kill me."

Minako made a face as she sat down. "That's weird. We just dealt with a Dopant who was trying to play the Grim Reaper over Christmas. That one was a doozy and a half."

Osamu looked at his daughter. "I heard about it. Figured the Riders might be teaming up with their senpais eventually." He brushed his hair back.

Akiko walked over with a cup of coffee for the older man. "Well, I think Mr. Shigaretsu's got something he's regretting and he wants to show he's still got the spirit to fight back."

Osamu looked up and accepted the coffee from Akiko, shrugging slightly. "Maybe. I know he was a hell of a combatant in his old days."

That sentence got Minako pondering: Her father never really talked about the old days of his youth. Why now, of all times?

Shotaro stood up and walked around to the window, looking out as he said, "Much like I've taken in Minako to help train her better, I'm more than willing to take your case, Mr. Sakurada."

Osamu nodded a bit. "I'll pay in advance, of course. I really appreciate it, Detective Hidari, for all you've done for my little girl so far."

The elder detective nodded and shook Mr. Sakurada's hand confidently, both of them unaware of Minako's suspicious yet concerned frown.

(Flashback End)

'The boss figured I'd be the best person for information on this case, but to be fair, I only know of a few missions from the past. Papa never even mentioned his teenage years, and he certainly would dodge the question as I grew up. Makes me wonder what he's hiding...' Minako wondered as she scrawled away in her notebook, only coming back to reality when she heard a call from Phillip and picked up on her Hercules Phone. "Yo."

"Sorry to do this, Minako, but I had to do a lookup on your dad's friend." Phillip told her.

The blunette shook her head. "No, it's fine. What did you get?"

"Inaba Shigaretsu, would be 45 years old today. He fathered one young man by the name of Ritsu. Not much else is shown before his death almost twenty years years ago when he left his wife as a widow before she remarried." Phillip read off.

"Twenty years ago? That means he'd probably have died maybe a year or two before Minako was born. Why would Mr. Sakurada lie about this?" Shotaro mused curiously.

"Hard to say, but from what I can tell, he's definitely got several warrants on his head for murders within the area from way in the past, something that goes back almost thirty years." Phillip responded.

"Eh? Dad never said anything about that!" Minako said in surprise.

Shotaro nodded a bit. "So it's gotta be the police he's dodging. That or he's got something he wants to finish."

Minako made a face as she looked at her boss before she got a call on the other line. "Oh, hold on. I'm getting another call." She put Phillip on hold and picked up the second line. "Moshi moshi?" She listened for a moment before her eyes widened. "Sure. We'll be right over." She hung up the line and spoke with Phillip. "That was Ritsu, Mrs. Shigaretsu's oldest son. He wants me and Sho-kun to go to his place."

About a half hour later, the detectives were at the Shigaretsu house and talking with the eldest brother of the three sons, Ritsu, as he explained, "Tatsuya has been sick for quite a while, and whenever he comes inside from playing, he's got some sort of weird purple goo on his hands."

Shotaro nodded a bit. "And you're certain he's just been in the yard at night?"

Ritsu looked at Shotaro with a raised eyebrow. "Detective, I know my little brother as well as Minako knows me. She and I were raised around each other because our families were neighbors before Mr. Sakurada decided to move the group to Tokyo to start a new life."

Minako nodded a bit. "I remember that day all too well. I don't know why my dad's back in town though."

Ritsu looked at Minako in surprise. "Your dad hired you guys?" When the blunette nodded in confirmation, he pursed his lips before speaking again: "Then it's gotta do with the Twin Reapers."

That made both detectives confused. "Twin Reapers?"

Down at the Sonozaki estate, Kirihiko was looking up some different Gaia Memories and noticed two that had been sold years ago. "Caucasus and Scorpio?"

Saeko looked at him curiously. "I'm sure my dad talked with me about that purchase at one point. An organization labeled only as "X" bought several Memories for testing on a mercenary group. Those four Memories were the only ones that actually were compatible with four members, appropriately nicknamed after their Memories."

Wakana leaned against the table and smiled. "Sounds interesting! Who were the successes?"

Saeko thought for a moment. "Um... I don't remember the first two, but the others were Inaba Shigaretsu and Daizo Kanatsugi, and those two were lethal."

At the base, Phillip performed another lookup for the Twin Reapers. "The Twin Reapers were a part of an experiment involving the Gaia Memories about thirty years ago. They were the best two because out of their entire team of four, they took the most lives."

Akiko made a face as she listened to Phillip. "Sheesh, and I thought this case was freaky enough. Dealing with a pair of assassins is a nightmare."

Phillip worriedly nodded a bit and called the two detectives. "Oi, Shotaro. I got something on the Twin Reapers."

Shotaro nodded a bit. "Got it. Thanks, aiboū." He hung up and looked at Minako. "Do you know of anyone named Daizo Kanatsugi?"

Minako made a face and shook her head. "No. My dad never said anything about that... or anyone by that name."

The young man nodded a bit as he sat down. "There might be some connection with your dad and his old friend and those people who hired the Twin Reapers."

She looked at him. "How do you figure?"

He shrugged a bit and adjusted his hat. "Has your dad ever said anything about his past? About what he did for a former job?"

She thought it over, making a face as she tried to think about something that her father had told her about his past, but nothing came to mind. "Nothing. He never said anything. I guess he wanted to leave that part behind." She made a face as she sighed softly. What was her father hiding?

Suddenly, the duo heard a few screams nearby as they got up and ran over to the First Fuuto National Bank, finding a scorpion-like monster striking a teller with its venomous tail before it dropped her, the woman convulsing on the ground.

Minako gasped in surprise. "That's...!"

"The Scorpio Dopant." Shotaro confirmed, putting his Driver on quickly.

The Dopant looked over to see the two of them. "Who are you?!"

"A trio who are gonna make you regret bringing tears to this city." Minako took her hat off before she equipped her Driver as well whilst pulling out her Memory and activating it. (Skull!)

(Joker!) Shotaro activated his own Memory before the duo stood together and moved their arms to opposite directions and spoke in tandem: "Henshin!"

Minako inserted her Memory in her Driver and pushed the slot to the side as Shotaro inserted the arriving Cyclone Memory and his Joker Memory before opening the Double Driver. (Skull!/Cyclone! Joker!)

Together, the detectives transformed into their respective armors, Minako replacing her hat before they charged forward.

But for what seemed like an older user, the Dopant was putting up a decent fight. He was countering every attack the team made and knocking them back.

W rolled on the ground as Phillip spoke up. "I believe this is definitely a competent user. Clearly he wouldn't be fighting back if he didn't understand how his Memory is supposed to be used."

Minako pulled out the Target Memory. "Well, we're gonna have to switch tactics then!" She loaded the Memory in her hip slot and tapped the button. (Target! Enhancement!) She dodged a sting and grabbed her Magnum, blasting the Dopant back.

It stumbled and growled. "Damn you!" It tried to sting her, but she was quicker thanks to her enhancement.

Shotaro got up and activated the Metal Memory, slotting it in. (Cyclone! Metal!) He grabbed the Metal Shaft and swung at Scorpio, knocking him back repeatedly with high wind strikes.

Scorpio was knocked back and he got back up quickly. "I'm not done yet!!" It started unleashing several blasts of what looked like sludge.

The heroes started to dodge the gunk, but the monster was too quick with its blasts, forcing W to switch to Luna Metal and smack as many blasts away as possible from both Riders, but Minako was smacked by a couple of stray shots and flew back.

"Rook!" Shotaro shouted, but before he could check on her, he got smacked back by a couple of sludge bombs.

Minako struggled to get up as she saw the Dopant approaching and laughing.

"You're finished!!" He raised his tail to strike her, causing the junior detective to flinch and shield herself, when suddenly a large blast of energy struck the Dopant down.

The heroes looked over in confusion and saw a Caucasus Beetle based Dopant holding its hand out. "I will not let you touch her, Inaba!!"

"Daizo?!" Scorpio got to his feet, only for Osamu (or Daizo) to charge in and start battling his old comrade.

Minako slowly pushed herself up to watch the battle, stunned due to recognizing the voice. "Otōsan ga... Dopant?"

Phillip spoke up in astonishment. "It makes perfect sense! 'Osamu Sakurada' must be a faux name, so as to throw off enemies!"

Osamu jumped back from a narrow dodge before he fired a shot of energy from his horn, knocking the Scorpio back.

Scorpio rolled on the ground before getting up. "Kisama... This ain't over by a long shot!!!" He turned and ran off quickly.

Osamu panted slightly as he changed back, catching his Memory and cracking his neck. "Been a while since I've had to use my powers." He turned and walked over to them, extending a hand to Minako. "Are you alright, Mii-chan?"

Minako looked at him incredulously before accepting his hand and getting up. "Y... yeah. I'm okay." She dehenshined as well, confused about everything. "How'd you know though?"

The elder Sakurada looked around the area. "I'll explain it, but here isn't a good place." He helped her and W out of the vicinity.

Back at the office, Akiko gave Osamu a cup of tea and looked at him curiously. "I can't believe you're a Dopant, Mr. Sakurada."

Osamu sighed softly and looked at the group. "It's a long story, but it's better if you guys know the fullest extent of my history." He turned to the sole person who was looking away in anger. "Especially you, Minako."

Minako glared at him furiously. How long had she been lied to by him? Then again, she really didn't know that much about him, so against her better judgement, she sat down to listen to the explanation. "Then explain it all the way through."

Osamu nodded in understanding and started explaining his story. "Thirty five years ago, Isamu and I were taken in by a group that no one else knew about, and several other kids were with us as well. We went through rigorous training and endured horrific punishments for any disobedience. All of it was for a new type of what we assumed were drugs that we were being made into test subjects for, but it was worse than a drug."

"Gaia Memories." Phillip spoke in understanding.

Osamu nodded in confirmation before continuing, "Inaba and I were two of the most successful test subjects out of several hundred, and besides us, there were about a couple dozen other successes, and each one of them perished after maybe three years, save for two of them. Inaba and I, along with those two, survived to adulthood with our Memories and we were able to kill over several hundred people. But it wasn't long until I started noticing several changes in Inaba's attitude and aggression."

(Twenty five years ago...)

"What the hell have you been doing, Inaba?!" Daizo shouted angrily as he confronted his old friend, slamming him against a wall.

Inaba laughed slightly. "Come on, Daizo. You can't tell me you don't love the rush of power that comes through your body from the Memory. The feeling of being a monster!"

"You're crazy if you think being a monster is a good thing!!" Daizo snapped back before he turned and ran his hands through his hair, frustrated to hell.

Inaba looked at Daizo and chuckled slightly. "You always tried to play the good thug in our little duo. Always ensuring we didn't overstep our boundaries. No more playing good cop, Dai! We're monsters, and nothing will change that!!"

"No, you're the monster!!" Daizo snapped again, pointing at Inaba angrily. "You always were when we were growing up! I'm not taking part in your garbage anymore." He turned and marched out of the building, slamming the door behind himself.

("After that day, it would be almost five years before I saw Inaba again, but it wouldn't be in anything good." Osamu explained in the overhead.

"So is that when you met the boss?" Shotaro asked curiously.

"Yep. Sokichi helped me learn how to be a better person than before and even helped me get into witness protection." Osamu confirmed. "But I didn't realize how much Inaba was gonna turn everything upside down.")

(To be continued...)

(Next time on Kamen Rider W Gaiden: Kamen Rider Skull!)

Daizo: It's never too late to start over!

Shotaro: If he plans to restart what he was doing in the past, everyone could be in trouble.

Phillip: This does explain why Minako has such a high compatibility with the Skull Memory.

Minako: I already lost one father figure, and I'm not gonna lose my real father now!!

(The Venomous Sigma/Reconciliation of a Family)

This clinches it!

Okay, wow. I didn't expect to actually come up with something this compelling for Minako. I mean, sure. I had a few problems on how it would actually work out in my mind, but good on Minako for deciding to listen to her father. Hopefully they'll have things ready to go next episode, but we'll just have to see. Read and review as always!