Welcome to the Armed Detective Agency
“Hey! Get to work! What are you goofing off for? We’ve got a meeting at exactly 10:45. So hurry.”
Kunikida was always lecturing him. That man and his impossible ideals. But he had gotten used to it.
Ever since Blaise joined the Armed Detective Agency, two years ago when he was twenty, his life had been very eventful. Looking for criminals, getting chased by men with guns and other things now belonged to his normal day to day life. And of course, all these papers that were piling up on his desk.
Every morning Kunikida would yell at him for not doing all those papers. And every time he would just shove them away. Maybe tomorrow he would do it, or maybe the day after that.
Originally, he was searching Yokohama for Dazai but stumbled upon the ADA. They were offering him a really good job with good pay. How could he refuse? In the meantime, he could easily search for Dazai. Maybe his job could even help with that.
Since all those years ago when Dazai disappeared he had never known rest again. Forgotten how it was to rest peacefully. Always afraid when he opened his eyes someone important would have vanished.
Luckily his new partner Kunikida Dopo never vanished. Every morning, he would be screaming at him, and frankly really anyone who was an unlucky passerby.
Now with a sigh he got up and followed the rest to the meeting room.
In the room Kunikida was already busy presenting the papers of to Fukuzawa who only silently nodded.
At the head of the table sat Ranpo who was busy sucking on a lollipop. His feat laid on the table. What horrible manners.
At the table also sat Kenji, that sweet boy smiling like always. Next to him sat Yosano who was chatting away with Tanizaki.
Blaise went and took a seat next to Kenji. From all the people in this room he was the one he liked the most. When he sat down Kenji smiled at him.
Fukuzawa cleared his voice. “Everyone thank you for coming. The last days have been very busy. There have been some shootings. And also quite a few people have been found dead in the slums…”
Blaise didn’t listen to the rest of the meeting. It was all boring. Even after all those years he could only think of one person.
Ever since Dazai left there had been a hole. A void that needed to be filled. Dazai was always the ray of sunshine in Blaise his life even if the boy himself wasn’t that much of the sunny type.
But when Blaise was depressed in Hogwarts, magically Dazai had entered in his life. He had filled up his days and given his life meaning. He had created a gang and a whole group of friends. His life truly had changed when Dazai Osamu had come barging in. And now he was gone. They said time can heal anything. But not this. Not his yearning for Dazai.
“Hey! Were you dozing off on the job???”
Blaise snapped out of it and looked up confused at Kunikida.
“What?”
“Have you not been listening? We need to go to the slums and look into all those dead people.”
“Sorry, Kunikida.”
Blaise got up and sighed. Dazai was probably long gone.
***
Kunikida and Blaise were wandering the slums. Apparently, there was a person with an ability who had been killing people on mass. They asked around a bit, but nobody knew anything. In the slums were mostly small starving children and ruthless adults. What a life.
There were tiny creaking houses who could collapse any minute. Small muddy streets and some guys doing drugs in an alley. Hopefully Kunikida didn’t see it. Otherwise, he would probably stir up a lot of trouble for them.
In the distance in the grass Blaise saw a teen on all fours in the grass. He had weird hair. Black with white tips. The teen was hungrily looking at some weeds. Probably some starved child.
Then the teen started to chew on the weeds. That couldn’t be healthy.
He ran over and could hear Kunikida screaming behind him asking him where he was going.
When he approached the kid a sort of black thing shot out trying to slit his throat.
Blaise was already holding his wand and cast, “Protego!”
A shield formed and kept back whatever that black thing was. It seemed to come from the kid. That meagre looking teen was a very powerful ability user.
“Woah kid, that’s quite a way to greet people.”
The teen eyed him with a severely dangerous face.
“How did you block my attacks so easily…” the teen stammered.
Blaise tried to put up his friendly smile. But this kid, this severely malnourished kid with empty eyes reminded him of someone. Dazai.
“Calm down, I was just worried seeing you on all fours eating weeds. You know that’s not so healthy.”
The kid kept staring at him. He seemed to prepare for another attack.
Kunikida seemed to near, finally catching up. “Blaise! Where do you think you are going??”
Blaise couldn’t let the kid attack again. But it seemed like he had found that killer they were looking for. Only for it to turn out to be a starving child in the slums.
Blaise hit him right in the stomach. The kid buckled over and Blaise scooped him over his shoulder.
“What the hell are you doing with that kid!” Kunikida screamed.
“I got our killer.” Blaise simply said. This seemed to shut up Kunikida. That man always liked efficient and well-done work.
The kid on his shoulder seemed to have regained his strength and started to squirm. “Let me go! What are you doing!”
“I don’t like abandoning people when they are clearly starving.” Blaise said.
“I don’t need your pity!! Put me down! Who the hell do you think you are!!??”
Blaise smiled. “Me? I’m Blaise, Blaise Zabini. A member of the Armed Detective Agency.”
The kid was all the more confused. “The Armed Detective Agency…?”
***
Eventually Blaise had managed to bribe the kid with some food and a sheltered place to stay. He couldn’t help but think of Dazai. A child who was also malnourished, but in another way. This kid wanted to eat but simply didn’t have food. He could no longer let anyone starve like how Dazai had been starving.
After the kid had settled in a small home from the ADA, Fukuzawa had called a meeting. Ranpo had seemed to think this kid could be a tremendous, good asset. A lot of people agreed and were planning an entrance exam for him.
But Blaise didn’t agree, he couldn’t help it. Thinking of a kid as a good asset to an armed force. To see him as a weapon was inhumane. But he had orders from the boss. And besides that kid said he was looking for a job, a way to earn money.
***
In the morning, he called the kid.
“Who’s there?” Sounded from the other side of the phone.
“It’s me Blaise. I hope you slept well in the dorm.”
“I’ve never lived in such a grand estate free of wind and rain.”
“I, see? Please come over to the Armed Detective Agency. We are having a bit of an emergency…” Then he hung up. That should be enough.
***
When the kid arrived on the fourth floor of the building Kunikida and Blaise were there.
“You are…?” Kunikida asked.
“Akutagawa. A man named Blaise called me to report here.”
“You’re Akutagawa? I heard about you. I need your help. A mad bomber’s holed up in our agency with a hostage.”
Akutagawa understood and immediately entered the office.
Surprisingly the kid made quick work of it. The bomber played by Tanizaki was easily captured. The bomb was sliced in half. What a special kid.
Akutagawa passed and now was officially a new member.
Blaise smiled and elbowed Kunikida. “I told you. I knew that kid was capable of some good stuff.”
The rest of the day Akutagawa still seemed pissed at Tanizaki.
They sat together in the restaurant and the kid kept giving Tanizaki murderous looks.
“That girl who played the hostage, she is your younger sister right?”
Tanizaki only nodded, scared for his life.
The kid looked him dead in the eyes. “You should treat her better.”
Tanizaki deflated and seemed relieved that that was the only problem.
Blaise elbowed Akutagawa. “Come on, be a bit kinder. I told you I would get you a job and some money. A kid like you shouldn’t starve and live on the streets.”
The kid looked him dead in the eyes. “Thank you.” And then he struck.
Blaise managed to evade it with some spells, but the attacks kept coming. Eventually Akutagawa gave up when the whole table was destroyed. Kunikida looked at them in a daze.
“I’ve never met a user this powerful before” The kid stated.
“I’m not an ability user. I’m a wizard.” Blaise said blatantly. Everyone in the agency knew. Now the kid was a member he should be allowed to know it too.
“I see.” Akutagawa said and then started attacking even more.
With a flick of the wrist Blaise kept shielding himself. After all those years and hard work, he could do silent spells. So, he just sat there eating while flicking his wand around. After all he had to become powerful enough to protect Dazai from Mori and all the other bad people in Yokohama.
Through all the chaos Kunikida screamed.
“Yes, Blaise is powerful. But who carries on like this in a restaurant??!!!”
Akutagawa stopped and made a small bow.
“You have my respect.” The kid said to Blaise.
Blaise only chuckled.
“Sit down and eat some more, you are still very meagre.” He could not let anyone starve like Dazai did.
The kid nodded and obeyed. Kunikida stared at them in confusion.
“Please help me become stronger.”
Kunikida quirked up an eyebrow. Blaise decided to explain. “Akutagawa told me that there are two people he wants to kil. The man in black and Akutagawa Ryuunosuke.” Kunikida visibly paled and whispered to Blaise.
“He wants to kill himself..?”
He nodded. But he knew he couldn’t let Akutagawa do that.
In the past Dazai had always chimed jokes about suicide like it was nothing. All their friends also thought it was nothing. But Blaise knew better than that. He knew Dazai was serious. He had seen his arms. His empty eyes and that fake smile.
He hadn’t seen him in years but he wanted him to be somewhere out there. He could only hope Dazai wasn’t somewhere dead in a ditch. And because of this he couldn’t let Akutagawa do that to himself.
Blaise whispered back. “We’re working on that.”
Kunikida cleared his voice and spoke up. “So who is this ‘man in black’ that you want to kill?”
“Four years ago, the man in black took away my sister.” Akutagawa said.
They bother nodded understandingly. Blaise still wasn’t sure who this man could be. Such a mysterious name.
“The man in black. Who could that guy possibly be?”