A Touch of Sorrow [Dazai x OC x Chuuya]

Viginti Quinque

"Memento Mori, Rei. You will return to dust eventually."

Those onyx eyes never left the scenery outside once, counting in whispers on the way to the destination. The place was circled by red marker on the map she was holding, it was a little further to the west of Yokohama thus it took quite some time to get there. 

"1... 2... turn left right here." She pointed at a small alley. 

The car steered firmly as it drove deeper into the alley, the path opened wider the further they went. "Turn right here." And the path led to a large secluded road. She raised her phone to compare the houses with the one in the picture. The one that matched was at the end of the road.

The vehicle stopped in front of a small orphanage, plain and simple as ever. The front yard was full of kids playing, running on green grass. The car stopped in front of the gate and out stepped the people inside.

"The third one..." The saying slipped under her breath.

Akutagawa came to stand next to Rei as he too admired the building. The gate was high, it bore a vintage look. The orphanage itself doesn't look as big as in the picture, but the capacity could be much different since the children playing outside were no few. 

A woman dressed in gray uniform came to welcome them inside. Rei offered them a smile and Akutagawa followed suit, minor the friendly expression. They exchanged greetings briefly before the caretaker took over the talking, leading them in without a moment to stop. Rei kept on a smile the entire time, trying her best to attract the attention to her instead of Akutagawa since his menacing gaze even parted ways whenever they walked through a crowd.

"So are you two here for adoption?" The caretaker beamed with eyes glistening.

Akutagawa's face turned grim almost that instant whilst Rei's was relaxed, her expression was better read as playful. "No, no, we're here to find someone yes, but not for adoption." Rei had to stand before Akutagawa to hide some part of his threatening aura. The woman only dared to look at the girl, she couldn't even move the gaze elsewhere.

"Ryuu-kun, relax..." Rei whispered once the woman turned around. Akutagawa replied with the silence he used since the beginning, and his expression didn't change.

Rei rolled her eyes. "For a minute at least."

This time, completely out of her expectation, Akutagawa was tamed down, wasn't glaring at anyone he saw, but he looked at them with a "friendlier" gaze. "That's better, looking much more handsome now." She teased right before she disappeared behind the door the woman opened.

Akutagawa followed behind her, lips curving up a tiny little bit.

"Now, you said you were looking for someone here?"

The two positioned themselves on the chairs while the woman settled down behind the desk.

"Yes! He's 15 now, he got black hair and eyes, he also has a lot of scars on his back." Rei said.

The woman tilted her head, seemingly racking her brain for such a standout individual. "Perhaps, a name would be easier." She smiled weakly looking at Rei.

"I don't know his name, unfortunately." Rei returned the woman the same faint smiled. 

Akutagawa batted an eye over the female who just ignored him, he didn't question why she didn't say the kid's name but he never knew exactly what was in her mind, whatever it was it clearly had to have a good reason.

"Then, if you don't mind, can I see the kids here?" Rei leaned forwards, eyes shining in joy.

"Sure, but I still don't think there is one that fits the description."