The train platform is heavy on security. Dazai has travelled by train in and out of Yokohama enough times to know the process. It's much easier to get back into the city when you have proof of citizenship, unlike the few times he's run away and had to sneak himself back in.
The platform is also desolate. The few people on there don't have any indicators of quirks too. Yokohama is a bit discriminatory to quirked users, so there are very few mutant types. People with powers that don't present physically can slot into the lifestyle of the closed-off city fairly well at times. Or they're recruited by some sort of special organisation (Legal or not).
So: How does one get into Yokohama? The first option is with a confirmation of citizenship. Most citizens don't possess any abilities, and if they do, they're often the types that stem from the city itself. No genetics involved... he thinks. It's a bit of a mystery since they don't have a science category for them as they do in the rest of Japan. Either way, abilities don't seem to be spreading or multiplying much since they first appeared.
Dazai, of course, has his own citizenship. Chuuya had to obtain one to leave Yokohama since his identity was... a bit hard to confirm. But Mori sorted that out with his connections. The Port Mafia can pull some strings to allow people in and out of Yokohama, although it's pretty obvious by the numerous trade areas and trafficking circles that the mafia is a part of.
Access to Yokohama can be granted by the government. The majority of applications are from the quirkless, which are accepted reasonably easily after background checks. It's much more difficult for quirked individuals to get in, and they usually require either relatives in the city or special circumstances. Dazai's met a few quirked in Yokohama. They usually either pretend they don't even have one or tell people it's a special ability. Even though very similar, people fear quirks more than abilities. It's a bit funny. Dazai thinks of Chuuya walking down the street and people saying he's less dangerous than any quirked individual.
He eyes the platform. Yokohama has a bit of a reputation for being terrible with sky-high crimes. Nobody who's heading into the city on the next train seems scary. Dazai might call the security guards a bit intimidating if he had to. They're the equivalent of police, but Yokohama can't really send police from their own division when there's a police force in Musutafu. That would just cause more distrust and tension in the already strained relationship between Yokohama and its bordering districts.
Ah... Dazai can't wait to see Odasaku again. Catch up on whatever gossip Kouyou has, strike a conversation with some of the squads he controls (He just wants to see them squirm in terror). There's nothing like home! Dazai wonders if Chuuya is coming back today as well. Probably not, considering the summer camp is in a few days. The League of Villains is probably making preparations left and right in their base in Shizuoka city. Or at least that's what Dazai hopes. Opponents are boring when they don't have good plans.
A loudspeaker announces that the train will be arriving in less than five minutes from now. Ugh, finally. This satchel bag is killing his back. Truthfully, he didn't want to even bring a bag, but Mori insisted he personally delivers him this week's report while they are having their little chat.
Someone bundled in a copious amount of clothes arrives on the platform. It's cutting it a bit close, considering Dazai can actually see the train arriving. He can barely see any of their body with the number of accessories on them. In fact... all the parts of their body that aren't covered aren't... there. Are they invisible?
Is that Hagakure? Technically, there aren't actually any defining features of an invisible person, considering they're invisible. But there aren't many people with invisible quirks in the Musutafu area. Dazai found that out when he saw the invisible person enter the base of the League and decided to find the files of every invisible quirk in the area. Then he found out if they had an alibi or not, etc etc, until there was a high chance it was Hagakure that was the one who entered. There had been a chance that it wasn't even a UA student that had gone in that day, so it was good to make sure he was right.
Well, there's only one way to find out. Dazai edges away from the assortment of clothes and hangs back until the train comes and he can observe which carriage she gets on. Once that's settled, he jumps on the same one eagerly and sets himself up for an interesting conversation.
Dazai walks onto the train with the most oblivious look he can muster.
The bundle of clothes huddles up (Dazai's pretty sure she would have rather just gone on naked, but Yokohama has teleportation and heat sensors. So do many other high-security buildings outside of the city.
He stumbles into the seat next to her. Turning his head slowly, Dazai lets out a fake gasp.
"Hagakure?!" He cries. "Is that you?? Wow, now we can chat for the whole train ride!"
The person whips their head around. "Dazai?!" Hagakure sputters as she repeats his earlier phrase, looking taken aback. Not for long though, as she quickly schools her expression into a smile. Well, at least he can confirm that she's the on this train.
"Yup. The one and only." He leans towards her curiously. "What are you doing on this train? Do you come to Yokohama regularly?"
"Sometimes." Her answer is incredibly vague as she shifts to look out the window (He can't really tell, but whatever... the clothes on her face shifted so...)
"Sometimes? Ugh, it's so hard to get into though! How do you do it?" Dazai whines and pokes at his satchel like a child would. His fingers find a keychain that he stole from Chuuya. It was a free gift from that concert he saw last Christmas. Since Dazai got him the tickets, he deduced it was a fair payment.
Hagakure pauses for a second, then breaks out into a cheery disposition.
"Oh, my family lives here!" She says enthusiastically and jabs a thumb toward herself. "Of course I don't see them a lot, since I'm going to UA."
"No way! I've always wanted to meet local Yokohoma residents." Dazai says with stars in his eyes. "But wait... how'd you even get a permit to live there? I thought there were regulations of quirked users in Yokohama...." Can Dazai be considered a pathological liar? No... maybe... nah. It's just entertaining (and necessary for some situations). Plus, who wouldn't want to see Chuuya explode in anger?
"My, um... parents are quirkless." She averts her eyes. Dazai almost ponders why she seems so shy all of a sudden, but he remembers the social rules of Japan.
"Oh! I don't care about that silly stuff, if that's what you're afraid of." Dazai waves her nervousness off easily. The discrimination was pretty stupid. Who needs more quirks when you have a gun?
Hagakure lets out an audible sigh of relief. "Thank goodness..."
"How do you have a quirk, then?" Dazai ponders aloud and rests his chin on his hands. And wow, she's trying to hide all of it. Must be inconvenient to be invisible. To never know what you look like. And eating and drinking must be hard too... oh well. The universe just doesn't favour her, he guesses.
"Invisibility runs on my dad's side, but it just ghosted through him..." She jokes lightheartedly. "Do you have family here too?"
"Oh no, no." Dazai brushes her off, shaking his head aggressively as his hair moves and bounces back and forth. "I'm here to sightsee."
"In... Yokohama?" Hagakure asks curiously. She traces the stitching of her duffle bag as the glove she is wearing trembles slightly. Dazai wonders what she's carrying in there. It's bright pink, which definitely suits her personality.
"It's an interesting place, isn't it?"
"It's lovely!" She blurts out. "I was just surprised. Most people think lowly of it."
Dazai shrugs. It's a dirty city, with street rats and people equivalent. It's mostly mafia owned. But at least they don't let some random genetic mutation decide how relevant someone is to society, just another form of oppression based on a predetermined factor of someone's life.
And he guesses there's some good. Like Odasaku. And maybe the Armed Detective Agency.
"Ahhh... stereotypes are terrible. I'm sure it'll be fantastic. I want to take a selfie with the Port Mafia boss."
He swears he sees her shiver, but that's pretty normal. "He's terrifying! I caught a glimpse of him once when after my ballet class. He's so... creepy..." Her voice seems distraught as she confesses her feelings toward Mori. Dazai wonders if that was the only time, or merely the first time. Hmm...
"Maybe I'll interview him for our next school project... Why the Port Mafia boss is such a creep: A documentary." Dazai remarks eagerly, swinging his legs back and forth. Maybe he could get Mori to do it with some bribery. Then again, he's pretty sure at least someone would puke after seeing a video of Mori for more than ten seconds.
"I think you'd probably die in the first ten minutes." She giggles, bringing her hand up to cover her masked mouth. "By the way... I know I'm not one to talk with my strange outfit, but what's with the bandages over your eye again? Didn't you get those off ages ago?" She points to the side of his face that is usually covered.
"I liked the way they looked so much that now I secretly wear them. It adds mysteriousness to my character." Dazai reveals dramatically and runs his hands down the smooth bandages.
Hagakure contemplates this. "I guess you're right. It is mysterious!"
"Obviously. Wanna play monopoly?" He holds up a battered box, rattling the contents inside. One corner of the box is so damaged that the board peeks out.
"Sure!" She nods and hauls her bag onto her shoulder without a second thought. "We should probably move to seats with a table though..."
Dazai looks at the empty space between them. "Right." He swings his satchel up and marches toward the closest free table booth. Thankfully, nobody ever goes to Yokohama, so it's reasonably empty.
Dazai collapses onto the seat. It's plastic and cheap, unfortunately. He was hoping it would be cushioned like the nice seats in the Port Mafia cars. Speaking of, he wonders if he's getting picked up from the station.
Hagakure sits opposite him and chucks her bag on the floor. Dazai carefully opens the box and sets out the board.
"Where're the tokens?" She questions, looking through the box.
"Oh, whoops." Dazai sighs, bringing his shoe up to his face. He unlatches the small heel to reveal two playing tokens; A top hat and a dog. He offers them up to the invisible girl. "Take your pick."
"Ew. Why are they in your shoe?!" Hagakure inches away from the pieces in Dazai's hand.
"Sometimes monopoly pieces come in handy. You never know these days." Dazai argues casually. "Now pick, or I'll pick first." He holds them in either hand
"Fine. I'll take the dog." He throws it to her side of the board.
Dazai smiles slyly. "Excellent choice! I'll be the banker." Hagakure's jaw clenches.
He sets up the board slowly and precisely, telegraphing every movement. The board lays still, as do the two stacks of cards on the board.
Dazai rolls the dice and ends up with four. Hagakure rolls two. She rolls her eyes at the lack of luck.
"Well, I guess I'm making the first move." He says gleefully, rolling up his sleeves and rolling again. It's a five, which means he gets to buy a railroad.
She rolls and lands on chance. It's a get-out-of-jail-free card. "Geez. Not off to a good start."
"It could be useful for the future." Dazai retorts cheerfully, shaking the dice around in his clasped hands before letting them roll across the board. To Hagakure's dismay, it knocks over her piece.
"You're only saying that because you're off to a good start!" She fixes the piece right away and gestures to his piece aggressively.
"No comment."
Dazai smiles a bit. It's fun. The two play for a while, and as monopoly goes, it's a long while. The trip to Yokohama is a few hours anyways, so they're not missing out on anything.
"You're bankrupt." Dazai cocks his head at zero properties opposite him; All of them belong to him.
"I know."
Hagakure decides to do homework. Dazai plugs in his headphones and stares at the wall. Sometimes about nothing at all, and sometimes about anything at all. It's a hobby of his. He'd rather smoke while he does it, but he'd rather not get kicked off the train. The border patrol takes lots of things seriously.
Hagakure's pencil falls out of her grip when the train halts. It rolls a metre or so, then stops in its tracks. She stares at it, swallows audibly, and then speedwalks off the train with her bag clutched in her grip. Dazai just glances at the pencil, and trails behind the girl.
The Yokohama train station is especially quiet. It's an odd time to visit, with the terrible weather going on. It's slightly stricter than the Musutafu end of the line. There's one queue to leave: It's at the very end where people go through a multitude of security checks. Even bag checks, so Dazai had been forced to leave his weapons back at his apartment. He has plenty stashed in both his and Chuuya's place though. Speaking of Chuuya's apartment, he may as well swing by. No point in trudging out to his own place for a single night.
Dazai queues up. There's one person queued in front of him before his classmate. She's looking nervous. He's pretty sure she's biting her nails... Dazai tries to make conversation, but the replies are pretty lacklustre. Hagakure is probably scared of the security, considering she's invisible. Hm, whatever. Unlike Musutafu, Yokohama also isn't strict on registering powers. There are still sections of the government for it and technically people should register, but it's too difficult to enforce. They'd have to test every person for an ability every year or so to make sure.
Also... some abilities aren't particularly useful by nature (cough... a certain mad lemon-obsessed scientist) so it's pretty hard to define if someone has one.
Dazai finally makes it to the front and out of the door with no trouble. Dazai sniffs the faint smell of seawater. Being a port city has its perks. Perfect for illegal trades across the sea... There's a car waiting for him, sleek and black. But he turns away from it- something far more interesting catches his attention.
Hagakure is leaving the station. Dazai is slightly curious, so he makes the decision to follow her instead. Mori can wait for him. She walks the opposite way of Port Mafia, making herself scarce.
He follows her proficiently, quietly and unnoticed. A few minutes later, she walks into an alley. Dazai grimaces. It's a dead end, so she'll have to come out sometime.
But she doesn't. Dazai waits and waits until he finally he peeks his head in. All there is in there is a bundle of clothes and a few locked doors. No bag in sight. Nobody in sight. Well, it's quite hard to track an invisible person.
Dazai sighs and turns back. He hopes the driver is still waiting for him.
The driver is, in fact, not waiting for him. Mori most likely figured he was up to something and is now making Dazai walk to his office as a punishment. He looks for anything around him that could be useful. Nothing but parked cars and a scooter with a kid and her parents nearby. It's never too late to learn how to ride a scooter!
Dazai strolls up casually, pretending like he's walking by. Then he turns around last minute and yanks the scooter with all his might until he's pushing along the cracked footpath with all his strength. One of the dads screams at him with the distant sobs of the kid in the background. It would make for a pleasant musical piece. Once he's lost the merry band, he slows his pace to a reasonable one. His feet are tired. Agonising, actually.
The Port Mafia buildings loom over the city as always, but the one Mori inhabits always has a more sinister aura. Of incredibly expensive red wine grown in Australia. Australian wine tastes like shit, he has no idea why Moritastic would even bother importing it. Isn't french wine supposed to be the most luxurious?
Dazai takes a deep breath (He's just trying to catch his breath) and opens the door to the building. Other members don't blink, already recognising him. A few even salute. It's just to try and get on his good side, minus a fanatic here and there.
Dazai swings the doors to Mori's office open like he would regularly. As if nothing has changed in the time they've been away from each other. The windows let in copious amounts of light, shining down on the expensive furniture.
Mori sits on the floor while brushing Elise's hair. It's a bit sickening. He turns to smile at Dazai. He's always smiling at Dazai.
"I've missed you, Dazai." It's supposed to be warm, but Dazai can't feel anything but a calculated tone infiltrating the sentence. "Come, sit. I'm sure you're feeling awful from that journey."
"Piss off." Dazai sighs heavily, swiping straight through Elise on his way to a chair. Mori pouts. Dazai smiles, off-putting and gleeful. "Let us get started!" He claps eagerly.
Mori's eye twitches slightly. He despises it when Dazai tries to take control. But, he carefully walks to his desk and sits right across from Dazai. His own chair is grander, more decorative because he likes to feel powerful.
"I didn't know you were so excited to play this game with me." Mori remarks as he traces the wood patterns on the table. His eyes don't stray from Dazai.
"I think about you every day." Dazai drones. Anything to get him happy.
"Ah, you're so good." Mori taps his fingers on the table in a slow rhythm. "So?"
"It's Hagakure Tooru. Although, that's not a big surprise to you, is it?" Dazai asks. His satchel falls from where it was leaning on his chair. Neither of them makes a move to do anything about it.
"That depends if you can provide evidence." They both know who it is. Mori has nothing to gain from any of it. Obviously, he doesn't, considering he already knows the traitor's identity. Considering he's known for months.
"I'd rather not. You don't really care about all this." He pauses. "You're afraid that I will find out the truth." Dazai accuses sharply. Mori smiles once again, but it's weak. It's wobbly, and Dazai knows that he is spot on. So, what is the truth?
"I know when you were younger that you were reactive, but I thought you had grown out of it. Let's talk like adults." Mori insists, soft like he's young and mocking like he's dumb.
"You can't patronise me." Dazai announces. "Would All for One treat me better than this?" Mori almost pales at the name. It's not fear, exactly, but something akin.
"No." Mori interrupts coldly, tensing up. "What I am doing is better for everyone- for the city itself." He seems sure of himself as he narrows his eyes at Dazai.
"So, what are you doing?" Dazai questions, but it's a thinly veiled demand.
When Mori tells him, Dazai wonders how it even occurred- how Mori, or the Port Mafia, could allow him to get that far.