𝐖𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐢𝐧 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐁𝐮𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐟𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐃𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞 | 𝐁𝐒𝐃 𝐱 𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫

𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐈: 𝐀𝐜𝐭 𝐈𝐈 - 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐁𝐞𝐚𝐮𝐭𝐲 𝐈𝐬 𝐐𝐮𝐢𝐞𝐭 𝐋𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐚 𝐒𝐭𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐮𝐞

As the weretiger lowered his head, mulling over what Kunikida had said, his thoughts couldn't help but drift back to Kyouka once more. He had experienced his worst at eighteen, but Kyouka was a mere child; he had been lucky enough to be taken in by the Armed Detective Agency, who valued comradery and treated its members as humans, whiled Kyouka had ended up in the Port Mafia, a violent organization that prided itself in its dark nature and the power it held over Yokohama's underworld—a place riddled with ruthlessness and bloodshed. 

Luckily, before Atsushi could spiral into an internal crisis, Dr. Yosano emerged from the infirmary, carrying along a message that sent relief through his being. "She's awake now."

"Do you think we can question her?" Kunikida inquired, silently privy to Atsushi's inner battle.

"Yeah, that shouldn't be a problem."

When the two entered, they were greeted by the sight of Kyouka laying still as a statue in the infirmary bed, staring blankly at the ceiling with dull eyes.

"A—Are you okay?" Atsushi was the first to speak up, having been the most concerned about the girl. He got no answer, as Kyouka remained silent, her gaze never once moving from the ceiling. "Oh, uh—you're in the infirmary at the agency. How're you feeling?"

No response.

"Y—You remember who I am, don't you...?" Atsushi was feeling more and more worried as time passed, and it was evident in his tone and concerned expression. Still, Kyouka did not speak and remained unmoving. She was so unresponsive that one might even think she was dead; the girl was not even blinking.

Kunikida, however, was not impressed, and was feeling rather impatient, so he got straight to the point. "Tell me, who's behind all of this?" The little girl did not spare him a glance, even as he continued to talk. "The Port Mafia is like a snake—unless you cut off its head, it'll just keep coming." Seeing as Kyouka still refused to say a word, Kunikida only felt himself becoming more irritated. "Answer me, girl," he warned, narrowing his eyes at her. "Who is your superior?"

"Hey, Mr. Kunikida..." Atsushi called softly. With him speaking so harshly to a girl who had clearly been through a lot, Atsushi couldn't help but sympathize with her situation and felt that Kunikida was being a bit too domineering.

"Tachibanadou's boiled tofu."

Atsushi let out a small hum of confusion. "Huh, tofu...?" Out of all of the things she could have said, the words "boiled tofu" were her first...

"It's good..." Though her face was expressionless, one could tell the tofu the girl spoke of held a place near and dear to her heart merely by her tone of voice that was filled with yearning. She was but a child, after all. If you looked really close, you could even see a spark of childish excitement resulting from the thought of getting her favorite food.

"Is that it?" Kunikida shot back dryly. His arms were crossed, a clear sign his mood had not improved in the slightest despite Kyouka finally responding to them. "You want us to get you some?"

"I'll talk if you do." Kyouka still didn't meet their gazes.

"No problem! It's a deal. Let's go," Atsushi agreed without a second thought, a small smile on his face. He had no reason to deny her request, after all. Besides, it was just some boiled tofu, it was easy to get—hardly a problem.

Kunikida, however, didn't seem to see things that way and looked at the boy with an incredulous expression, lowering his voice to a whisper-yell. "Hey, are you crazy?!"

But Atsushi just gave him a confused look, oblivious to his superior's concerns. Seriously, it was just some boiled tofu. What was the big deal? 

*✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ: