Chapter Text
The small cafe Akiko was situated in felt more like a public living room than a small coffee shop, it’s plush couches having done the work of portraying this thought. She sat cross legged with piece of string wrapped around her fingers, moving it effortlessly to form different shapes and patterns.
“Akiko?” A voice called. The girl looked up and smiled, her yellow eyes staring up at a tall grey haired man.
“Uncle Ōgai!” Akiko exclaimed. The man took off his hat as he sat down next to Akiko, almost immediately sinking into the soft fabric. Ōgai let out a content sigh as he let himself relax into the small couch.
“You are right, Akiko. These couches really are soft,” Ōgai mumbled. Akiko smiled as she turned her body to face her uncle.
“So you wanted to talk?” Akiko asked. Ōgai sat up and offered a smile to his niece.
From the way his smile grew, Akiko knew almost immediately what the old man wanted to discuss. She let out a disgruntled groan in response.
“Really? About the Jūni Taisen?” Akiko huffed as she slumped back into the couch, now focusing back onto her string. Ōgai let out a quiet chuckle.
“I know you were surveying the whole thing, no need to talk about that,” Ōgai said. Then, he too, dropped his smile,“ it’s about the winner”
“You mean the rat? Nezumi?” Akiko said, not bothering to look up from her string,“ didn’t he wish to forget or something? You told me this before, uncle. I don’t see why-”
“His wish was denied”
“What?” Akiko stopped playing with her string and looked back up towards Ōgai. Confusion was riddled all over her face,“ then why the hell did he come to school looking so peaceful? You don’t just go out from that thing peacefully when you’ve never experienced death before”
“Calm down, Akiko. I was the one that did the granting which earned me a few choice words from our patrons”
“What? Did they feel cheated?”
“In a sense,” Ōgai said,“ I was able to grant his wish but not in the way we’ve always done”
“What do you mean?” Akiko asked.
Instead of answering, Ōgai reached into his coat and pulled out a yellow envelope. He then extended it out, now waiting for it to be taken.
Akiko plucked it from his hand and gently began to open the envelope.
“Daddy! Daddy!” A child’s voice rang out.
Akiko briefly looked into the direction of the child’s voice and froze at the sight.
Ōgai watched as Akiko’s face contorted from surprise, to confusion and finally to fear. She then looked back towards the envelope and placed a hand on her face, wiping off the accumulating sweat off of it.
Akiko rose her eyes to meet her uncle’s unemotional ones.
“That’s-no. He was killed by Niwatori. There’s no way in hell that’s him,” Akiko hissed, her fear now festered into anger.
She wanted answers.
She needed answers.
“You are right about that but, like I said, I was the one that granted the wish. The poor rat wanted to forget,” Ōgai stood up and placed his hat back on top of his head. He then made his way towards the café’s doors and gave a small smile,“ so I made him forget”
Akiko gritted her teeth as she pushed her hand through her black locks.
This has to be nonsense, Akiko thought, a wish rejected just because of cheating? If that were the case, the option to even make a wish wouldn’t even be there in the first place
She looked back towards the envelope and let out a long frustrated sigh, dreading what mess she’d now been roped into.