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Kouyou wakes up with a slight headache, and for a second she thinks that she’s been drugged, due to the lack of pain stabbing through her body when she moves. The bed she’s on is surrounded by white curtains, and the air smells medical. It’s not a very hard conclusion to come to when she thinks about being on painkillers in a hospital.
But as she reaches to her side where she knows a wound should be, she finds nothing but smooth skin where a knife had previously been painfully inserted into her skin.
Yosano must be here, she thinks, fingers going up to rest lightly where her head still pains her.
The air in the hospital, or, more likely, the Agency’s infirmary, is still, which tells Kouyou that nobody’s there in the room. She pulls herself up, letting her feet find slippers left by the bed. It’s a courtesy Kouyou hadn’t been expecting, as she’d rather been thinking of treading lightly on bare feet.
Her breath sounds loud in the room and she gently grits her teeth as she sweeps aside the curtains to reveal the bright lights beating down on her. Standing, she walks cautiously towards the exit. She wants to see Yosano before she leaves, the woman that she’s become enamored with but with whom she’s unable to create a relationship with because of their respective organizations. Seeing anyone else is a risk she has to take.
Surprisingly, the Agency’s office is empty from all visible people, and everything is tinged with violet from the almost-set sun. She listens for someone else’s breaths before she moves, and hears the soft clinking of a spoon on porcelain. Someone is on the couches, just a bit away, and they have tea with them.
When Kouyou peers past the divider, Yosano’s smile greets her. She looks unsurprised by Kouyou’s appearance, though it’s only natural that she would be. She was, after all, the one to treat Kouyou’s injuries, with her having been stabbed and thrown against the wall so many times by an ability user with a grudge against the mafia.
Soon, Kouyou would have to go after him again, and this time, Golden Demon wouldn’t fail her.
Kouyou runs her fingers through her hair, which is hanging loose after having fallen out of it’s neat bun. “Greetings,” she says, sitting lightly on the couch next to Yosano. “I’d thank you for healing me, but doctors really should do their jobs.”
“If the patient is an enemy,” Yosano’s lips quirk upwards, “I think the rules are bent a bit.” She takes another sip of tea.
“May I have some, darling?” The pet name rolls off Kouyou’s tongue easily, because that’s what their relationship amounts to now. Something between romance and friendly enemies. Yosano blushes but nods, getting up to bring her a cup and turning on the electric kettle on the side table.
“I don’t think that you thanking me is the issue,” Yosano says, when her back is turned to Kouyou. It’s as if she doesn’t want Kouyou to see her face. “But… being in the mafia is a dangerous job.”
“So it is,” Kouyou hums as Yosano sits next to her again.
“You took quite a few hits,” Yosano’s hand is near Kouyou’s thigh as she sits again, and a part of Kouyou aches knowing that as it is, they will never be able to be closer. There’s parts of Kouyou that wants to take Yosano to romantic candlelit dinners or simply sit beside her in comfortable silence, and there’s parts that want to talk to her more than they already do, on the rare times they meet up.
“I can’t heal brain damage, you know,” Yosano continues, “so count yourself lucky, won’t you?”
“Then allow me to grant you my deepest gratitude,” Kouyou smiles widely, glancing at Yosano out of the corner of her eye. The water is boiling. “Though to be honest, I’m surprised you let me stay here at all. And there must’ve been so much effort put in to get everyone else away. And it’s all for an executive of the Port Mafia.”
Yosano pours the tea gracefully, and her purple hair falls over her shoulders as she does. Kouyou watches her as her lips thin. “They all agreed that we wouldn’t keep you hostage again. You have no reason to hold back against us, but you also don’t have any need to harm us.”
“That’s not all, though, is it?” Kouyou keeps her eyes only on Yosano, bathed in picturesque lighting.
“No, it’s not.”
“What else made them leave?”
Yosano stays silent, handing Kouyou her cup of tea and letting her gloved fingers touch Kouyou’s bare ones briefly. Kouyou breathes in the smell of the tea, putting it down to let it steep.
“Trust me, Yosano, dear,” Kouyou says, after a minute, “it’s better to know the worst than to wonder.”
Yosano takes a breath, eyes dropping to her cup of tea. “Doctor Mori is dead.”
Kouyou doesn’t move, for a few seconds after that. She didn’t care about Mori, but he was a large reason for her staying in the mafia. Death is merely a means to an end, in their organization. Kouyou doesn’t meet Yosano’s eyes, instead keeping her face calm for a moment longer.
Then she laughs.
Yosano looks shocked when Kouyou looks back up, but Kouyou isn’t torn up about that.
“You think that I liked Mori?” she places her hand in front of her mouth to hide her smile. Inside, her emotions swirl in a way she can’t quite comprehend, but it’s not wrong to say that she isn’t upset about the man’s death.
“I did,” Yosano glances at her from out of the corner of her eye. “But you’re saying I was wrong?”
“Yes.”
Yosano lets out a shaky breath, smiling at her hands, which are folded neatly on her lap. “That’s good. It wouldn’t be good for us if I was to tell you how much I truly loathed him.”
Kouyou lets out a sharp laugh. Mori’s death feels less real than this moment, with the purple light falling onto Yosano’s smooth face. “I stay in the mafia not because I like him, but because I’m loyal to his version of it. Do you know what the mafia was like before he came along? Of course you don’t.” Kouyou picks up her tea and sips it.
“What was it like?”
“Bloody. Bloodier than Mori’s ever was. And the boss, he was so hungry for power that he’d kill any traitors within a second.”
Yosano hums, one hand leaving her lap to place a piece of hair behind her ear. “So Doctor Mori was merciful, you mean? Funny. I never saw him as having mercy in the least. He only had cold hard logic and the ability to act harmless.” Yosano’s lips have quirked up.
“I know,” Kouyou takes her hands and puts one on Yosano’s. Kouyuou’s demeanor reads calmly, but her heart is beating fast. “He used his logic cruelly.” Yosano’s purple eyes rise to meet her’s. “I never did tell you that I saw you, when you were under the care of the mafia, but I did. And at that time, I didn’t care.”
“…You saw me and didn’t care,” Yosano repeats, fingers moving to fit between Kouyou’s, “but it’s different now, isn’t it? You came to this secluded area to talk with me. You could’ve left.”
“You’re so sweet to believe in me,” Kouyou smiles, leaning one shoulder closer to Yosano’s. She remembers seeing Yosano, all those years ago, a small figure in a wheelchair. Kouyou had thought that she was like a corpse, sitting there with the brat Elise humming as she pushed her. Now, her proximity with Yosano feels anything but dead.
“I never saw you, in the mafia. I don’t understand,” Yosano tells her, letting their shoulders meet and staring into Kouyou’s eyes. “But I want to. Tell me why you stayed with Doctor Mori. Tell me why you didn’t care.”
Kouyou’s breath catches. What a powerful question to be asked, she thinks.
“Of course,” she breathes, and Yosano smiles sadly. “Mori killed the old mafia boss, as I’m sure you could believe. The old boss was someone I’d been planning on killing myself, if only I could get close to him. He’d been the one to kill my dearest friend; it was then that I figured it out; I’m a person who can only exist as I am in the darkness. I hated the boss for what he did, and craved revenge. I was in the mafia even at the time that Mori killed that vile man, and I was happy that he was dead; it was a time when Mori was seen with suspicion by all the other members, and was looking for allies. I remember realizing that he had murdered the older boss. It was,” her eyes drop to the ripples spreading in the tea in her cup, “a grounding realization.”
Yosano’s hand squeezes slightly tighter.
“Mori saw me and knew that I would be loyal to him, if only he showed how harmless he was. But he didn’t need to do that, because just knowing that the previous boss was dead by his hand brought me onto Mori’s side. It was... good revenge. I feel no regret.”
“I see,” Yosano says, and Kouyou looks over to find her staring at their joined hands. “I wouldn’t expect you to change, you know. But Doctor Mori controlled me so much that I could never respect your decision to follow him.”
“Is it different now?” Kouyou tilts her head lightly, seeking Yosano’s eyes. “I would want to be with you even if you sought to bring Mori back to life and kill him again.”
“I did save you, didn’t I?” Yosano says, and her shining eyes travel up to meet Kouyou’s. “It’s not just my job. I kept my distance from you before, romantically, because of our differences. Our friendship is dangerous because of your part in the mafia, but... I never said I disliked danger.”
Kouyou breathes in, well aware of her heartbeat. “And what differences did we have?”
“Other than being in different organizations and you following Doctor Mori, you mean? None significant to keep me from seeking out your company, whenever we would meet.”
Kouyou remembers it clearly. The two of them have met outside of their organizations only a few times, to strengthen their friendship outside the bounds of the banter they share when their organizations fight. When Kouyou had first proposed a romantic relationship between them, being rejected for the moment wasn’t the end of it. She can still remember Yosano’s flushed cheeks.
“Doctor Mori was,” Yosano speaks, “the worst thing that ever happened to me. Even if he helped you in some way, I couldn’t tell you about that until after he died.” Yosano laughs softly.
Kouyou picks up her tea with her free hand, bringing it to her lips. It’s cooled down considerably.
“I can understand that. You never had to be with me in the first place.” Kouyou reaches up to smooth out her bangs after she places her cup down again.
“Of course not,” Yosano smiles, turning her head so that her warm breath blows on Kouyou’s cheek. “Though I do find it interesting that you knew of my past with Doctor Mori and never told me.”
“Hush,” Kouyou waves a hand idly, “I only knew that you were a sick girl who was around him a lot, and later disappeared. The rest I found out later, myself.”
Yosano lets out a laugh. “Clever.”
Kouyou smirks at the other woman, resisting the urge to tuck a strand of Yosano’s hair behind her ear. It’s still so new, whatever this closeness is, even though they’d gotten close to this before. But with all the talk of Mori, it brings a new weight to the way they interact with each other.
“What do you think would have happened if our situations had been switched?” Kouyou asks, looking away from Yosano as she does.
“If I was still working for the mafia and you were taken into the Agency, you mean?” Yosano’s eyes are on her as Kouyou takes another sip of her tea. “I don’t know. Does it matter, now that we’re here?”
“Maybe,” Kouyou says, imagining a world where she’s a flower that can bloom in the light, and not the darkness. “Maybe not.” Now, a vision of Yosano, perpetually used by Mori and without the vibrant life that drew Kouyou towards her so fast. “But if we’re considering our positions, then maybe we should think more seriously than we have been. It’s not every day that a member of the Armed Detective Agency empties her office for a woman belonging to the mafia.”
Yosano sighs, shifting so that her head is resting all the way on Kouyou’s shoulder. “I’ve thought enough on my life, and I’ve decided that I care about life itself. That's why I became a doctor, and I can keep being one whether I'm dating someone in the mafia or not.”
Kouyou feels something strange light up inside her. Inside the mafia or not, Yosano has found her path, a path that took her and anyone else in with open arms. If Kouyou's purpose had been staying in the mafia for a man who doesn’t exist in this world anymore, then her entire world should be falling apart right now. If she was really in it for loyalty towards Mori, she should be torn up about his demise.
And yet, as she takes another long sip from her tea, her world has only grown brighter. A flower of light blooms in Kouyou’s heart, and she smiles. Thinking of her place in their vast world will come another day.
“Your tea is going to get cold,” she says, reaching behind Yosano to hold her lightly by the waist.
“I can always make more,” Yosano replies with a smile in her voice, and Kouyou understands; Yosano is comfortable just as she is. Kouyou, it seems, can only hope to catch up to her someday.