Withering Rose (Dazai x OC)

Chapter 20-Season 3

It has been a few days now since the orphanage director's death. There was a small funeral for him with flowers that my floral shop provided. Now, at the moment, I was in a rush to get to the Armed Detective Agency. Something bad had just occurred and I needed to know the reason behind it.

"Rozuko! What's the rush?!" The manager of the coffee shop, and the person who took me in, shouts. I had run through the cafe to the back to use the stairs to go up to the upper floors. I didn't answer as I brushed past him.

Once making it to the fourth floor, I threw open the door to the ADA. I only seemed to spook Kunikida and Atsushi while Dazai was unaffected. No other members were there except those three men. That was alright, they were the ones who could answer my questions. Looking up Dazai spots me in the doorway.

"Rose?" Dazai questions, surprised, slinging his feet from off his desk. "What are you doing here?" He walks towards me, his arms outstretched for a hug. "What happened to you? You're a little scuffed up." He wonders as he hugs me, relaxing me with his comforting grip. I was exhausted and his touch was so warm.

"So warm..." I murmur into his chest which gets him to chuckle.

"Come sit." He says, pulling back from the hug. He then ushers me over to his desk where he sits in his chair. Once he's settled he pulls me into his lap, making me giggle.

"Rozuko, are you okay?" Atsushi asks worriedly. I offer the younger boy a smile to calm him as Dazai wraps his arms tightly around my waist.

"Just a few scrapes. I'm not seriously injured or anything." I wave him off. "I actually came here because I got in a fight."

"A fight?" Kunikida pipes up intrigued. He pulls his head from out of his ideal book to glance at me. I nod my head.

"Yeah... and I'd kind of like to know the reason behind it." I state crossing my arms over my chest upset.

"Huh? Explain." Kunikida motions for me to continue talking.

"Well, it all started about a half-hour ago..."

I was walking through the back alleyways of the city trying to get back to my shop after completing a delivery. I ended up stumbling upon a puddle of blood in the middle of the alley, no other signs of blood elsewhere or even a body. It was weird, and as I go to step over the puddle to continue on, I hear the sound of a metal weapon coming near.

"Bamboo." I mutter under my breath. A sprout of bamboo appears behind me, blocking the weapon. Sliding my right leg behind me I grasp at the bamboo, my left elbow bent below and my right arm bent above my head. Putting pressure backward on the bamboo, I lift the sprout off the ground. I slide to the right to go underneath it, standing to face my opponent.

It was a man probably in his late twenties wearing a black robe and a simple white mask with a couple of lines of red. His hood was up so I could not make out what hair color he had, not like that'd help much in my identification of him. In his grip was a hand sickle.

"Why?" I ask, glaring the man down. "Why attack me?"

"Death to the gifted." The man says in a robotic monotone voice.

"Hm... but how do you know about me? I haven't existed as a gifted in four years." I state my grip on the bamboo tightening. "Obviously, I'm not your only target. But I'm going to have to put a stop to your actions."

"You can't reach me."

"Well, you haven't seen me try yet." I grin. "I wasn't the captain of the Extraction Unit for nothing."