"Academy instructor?"

Marude sighed and turned around to face Kaneki. "I know it sounds like a downgrade. I wouldn't beg you if I had a choice."

"No, not at all." Kaneki smiled. "It's just… I wish to spend more time with my family for the time being. I'll consider it."

"Better be quick. Anyway, that is not the main reason to meet you here." Marude walked to Kaneki's seat and shoved a file into his hands. "What do you think?"

Kaneki flipped through the pages with photos of gruesome images of human body parts. Correction. What used to be human body parts. "If it's Dragon Orphans, they shouldn't have left anything behind."

"Perhaps they evolved again. Who knows? Those bastards seem to have developed a sick taste in children." Marude ruffled his hair. "Whatever it is, it picked the worst time. The Prime Minister is literally breathing down my neck."

"Everyone is afraid. That is understandable."

"And the media decided to publicize the disproportion between ghoul and human populations with some made-up statistics." His fists pressed above his hips. "Just get in touch with Urie. He's in the Seventeenth Ward."

"Urie? He is the principal of this case?"

"Yes. Now you know why we don't have enough instructors."

Kaneki clasped the file close and laid it on Marude's desk. "I'll get to it." He stood up. His glasses glared with the touch of sunlight. Along with his silvery-white hair…

"You know that you look like Kishou Arima."

It was that same smile again. "I know where you are getting, but that won't work, Director." Kaneki went to the door and opened it.

Marude shrugged his shoulders. "Hey, at least I tried."

"However…" Kaneki held on the knob. "I have a few names that may help."

"Your names are just the same as mine. Unlike you, they are even more stubborn and elusive."

Kaneki pushed the bridge of his glasses up. "That's before you asked for my help."

The door closed.

Marude snorted and crossed his arms. "Damn kid."

Like Kishou Arima…

Kaneki walked down the aisle, but stopped to admire the bright blue sky.

He wondered if he had lived up to Arima's expectation.

"Papa!" A toddler grasped her father's pants while looking up to him.

The father glanced at the blonde girl, who had looked away, behind them. He turned around.

"What? I never knew you had a daughter." A woman, with her purple bangs covering her eye, went to them. "Amon."

The toddler had slipped behind him. Both her hands clenched tightly onto his pants.

"Rabb… Touka. Why are you here?"

Touka smirked, pulling up the basket in her hand. "Special delivery."

Children—from toddler to teen—gathered at the yard. Laughters and summer. Those made the best combination.

Her swollen calves dangled on the raised porch. A cup of hot drink in her hands. Although she heard that watermelon was a better option… "She's new."

Amon glanced at her. "We found her two years ago… covered in her parents' blood." He watched the kids chasing one another. "She hasn't spoken much since then."

Touka stared at the black liquid in her hands. Her head raised. "Human or ghoul, children are the ones suffered most." She turned to him, at just the right time when the shriek and wail pierced their ears. "But at this rate…"

Amon had not broken a sweat and remained as he was. "They can be handful sometimes, but the oldest among them," he looked to the boy who was breaking up a fight, "Hikari, has grown up and helped take over most of the chores."

Touka frowned. "And Akira?"

Amon's eyes softened as he peered out at the blue sky. "When we started this shelter, she was the one cooking for the children."

"Was?"

One of us has to make a living.

The unlively recital from Amon did little to hamper Akira's condescending face from manifesting itself to Touka.

Amon lowered his head. "I told her that I would support her. Instead, it's the other way round."

"I see." Touka faced squarely and closed her eyes. The cup in her hands set on a nearby tray. "You haven't slept with her yet, have you?"

The cup in Amon's hands almost slipped off. Having good reflexes did have its perk. "Touka! There are children here!" He watched her chuckle.

"How long has it been? The two of you together?" Touka leaned backward, relying on her straightened arms against the floor as support. She didn't wait for an answer. "It's very noble of what you've been doing for the children." She turned her head to him. "Just don't lose sight of the person beside you, Amon."

The man remained silent and could only stare at her. While the latter was a lot younger than he was, her insight was never inferior to his.

"I should get going." Touka slowly got up on her feet. As she arched her back, her belly protruded.

A ghoul wife and a former human husband. The couple seemed to be doing well.

Were they an exception?

"Touka."

The woman looked back.

"Have you ever thought that you and Kaneki might not work out?"

Touka breathed out. "All the time."

Amon widened his eyes.

"But I guess we never let that stop us." Her smile told him everything he needed to know.

Six years. That was how long they had been together. At first, they were out there to help neutralize harmful ghouls. Then, they found the first kid. After that…

"Papa…"

A smile drew on his face whenever he saw the girl. "What is it, Chibi?"

The girl frowned and lowered her head. Her hand pressed on her tummy.

Amon's brows raised at the groaning stomach. "Let's get you something to eat."

The girl nodded firmly and beamed.

A little hand reached out. A big hand wrapped around it.

Walking side by side, father and daughter swung their arms that were tethered together.

The bliss was invaluable.

A/N:

I got this idea from Amon's background growing up in an orphanage and the emotion he showed when a child brought into the CCG.

He looked like a guy who has a soft spot for children.

Comments will be appreciated as always.