Marie walked away from the place, smiling.

Never had she expected the day to develop in such a way.

She would have waited for news from Yosano, although she was certain that things would turn out for the best.

Both seemed to be taking it more than well.

She automatically headed for her favourite bakery, the one she used to go to whenever she went out with Yosano and often when she went to the boutique.

She always brought treats to Elise, but not only to her.

She also used to buy her father's favourite cake.

She didn't deliver it to him in person, but she knew Mori would appreciate it.

Every time she brought it to him it disappeared. And she was sure it wasn't Elise who ate it.

It was one of the few gestures of affection she was able to reserve for her father and which the latter seemed to somewhat accept. That's why she did it more than willingly.

As soon as she crossed the threshold of the house, she was greeted by a ringing voice.

Marie was surprised to find her father still at home, but didn't comment and merely pulled Elise into a hug.

'Marie, thank goodness you're back! I couldn't stand him any longer!'

'Why? What happened? 'She feigned astonishment, but those were dynamics that occurred often and not only under their roof.

She knew that such scenes were also commonplace in the Mafia.

She had always imagined that it was a set-up orchestrated by her father.

To make his interlocutors lower their guard and make them believe they were in an advantageous position.

To make them believe that it wasn't that difficult to catch him in the sack, but Marie knew that the only person who could rival Mori was Dazai.

It was no coincidence that the boss would have wanted him as his successor.

'He wanted me to try on clothes again! I can't take any more!'

Marie feigned offence.

'So, you don't like my clothes?'

'Your clothes are always beautiful... But I don't feel like trying them on!'

'Oh, yeah?' Marie rose.

'So, you don't even want to taste the sweets I got today?'

Elise's eyes lit up. 'What did you get?'

'They had new pastries today... If you'd like to snack with me...'

'Yeeees... Let's get away from that brute!'

Marie hinted a smile before being dragged into the kitchen by the little one. What she couldn't see was the smile that had formed on Mori's lips.

Unfortunately, it was very difficult for Marie to smile directly at him. But after all, he gave her little reason to do so.

He had never been very good with feelings, but he was convinced that in other circumstances things would have been different. Maybe he still wouldn't have been a perfect father, but at least he wouldn't have had to put up a psychological wall with those he loved most.

Perhaps if she had not left like that, he would not have accepted that absurd blackmail.

He turned on his heel and headed for his study.

He would eat Marie's sweets later.

Hanging from his chair, he found the coat he had gone out in the previous evening.

Marie wasn't the only person with whom he was forced into strained relations.

And the culprit was always the same.

His mind was lost in replaying memories of the previous evening.

The beginning of Marie's training had not only been difficult for her, but also for Mori.

A thousand and more thoughts had crowded his mind before he decided to make his choice.

The idea had been there for a long time, but he had needed a concrete threat to put it into action.

Marie would surely have hated it, but once she was able to use Umi to Dokuyaku she would have seen things differently.

When Verlaine had come to him after a long period of solitary artistic production and shown a desire to want to train new recruits Mori had been hesitant and had preferred to test the waters, but this artificial creature had far exceeded all his expectations.

Not only was he a first-rate spy and assassin, but he was also a master of excellence, and the more he saw him forging new monsters, the more he understood the greatness of Rimbaud's work. That was one of the few things he would never forgive Dazai: the elimination of such a valuable element as the former French spy, even if it was precisely because of that that Verlaine was now on his side.

The idea of trying to entrust Marie to him had occurred to him almost from the start, but his thoughts as a father had clouded his reasoning to some extent.

So, all he had done was say to himself: 'I will observe the results of his training to see if he is the right person.'

The first result had been enough for him to realise how formidable the man was at coaching.

It had been enough for him, but he had wanted to test him and each time he seemed to surpass himself.

Gin and Kyouka were a good example of Verlaine's work.

He knew that he could guarantee him what he himself was unable to offer his daughter.

He also knew what cruelty it was to prevent Marie from continuing to take care of what she loved most, but he had no other way to convince her.

And if he had not succeeded in twenty years, the only alternative he had left was strong-arm tactics.

He certainly wished Verlaine had not been so violent with her from the first moment, but he knew it would not have served his cause.

He needed Marie to learn how to manage her skill and he needed her to do it rather quickly.

And Verlaine was the best solution.

He hadn't appreciated that cut he had given her on the first day, but he was convinced that things would soon improve between the two of them.

On all fronts.

This was the flow of his thoughts as he prepared two glasses of wine on the small table he had on a small beach.

One of the many houses he owned, but which, for reasons unknown to him, seemed to be one of Fukuzawa's favourites.

One of the few places where the man agreed to see him.

Mori had left his boss's coat at home, opting for more casual clothes, not even his doctor's robe.

When the two decided to meet, they were just Rintarō and Fukuzawa, two middle-aged men sharing an evening together.

Nothing more and nothing less.

They had no fixed appointments and were not even used to seeing each other that often, but they knew how to make do with the little time they had.

Fukuzawa was the only one he allowed to have dominion over him. The only one to whom he allowed to hold the reins, even if only for a short time. He was the only one with whom he felt he could let go of all his defences.

Not even Marie's mother had ever been able to make him feel this way: free of the chains that trapped him in a life he hadn't chosen for himself. Even bonding with Fukuzawa had been extremely simple, like drinking a glass of water, like breathing.

Their first night of passion had been spontaneous, unforced, unpretentious.

They knew they were important to each other without needing to concretise their thoughts in futile words that would then be lost in the wind.

There was little point in professing eternal love if one was then unable to fulfil such promises with deeds.

After his attempt to get Yosano back, Mori knew that for a long time he would be alone drinking wine and watching the sun set over the beach.

But he knew that Fukuzawa would return.

Not everything would return as before, but a good deal of it would.

Fukuzawa had also hoped that his return would trigger some reaction in Mori.

He had hoped, but not a single crumb of surprise had crossed Rintarō's face when Fukuzawa had returned.

Instead, it was the silver-haired man who had smiled at Mori's non-reaction.

There was the man he loved so much.

Their rapprochement hadn't been so easy.

The Yosano incident had created a deep rift, difficult to heal.

They had long since stopped denying how different their ways were, but the goal they pursued was common.

And Fukuzawa, unlike many, knew Mori's weakness and knew that certain choices had been forced upon him.

He wanted more than that. 'Every time, I wonder if you will really come.'

Fukuzawa smiled.

It was a lie.

The Mafia boss didn't bother without certainty.

After all those years of seeing each other, he still couldn't understand how he could so accurately predict the moves of others. It was and would forever remain a great mystery to him.

A mystery that never ceased to fascinate him.

He decided to play his game.

'Then you know you are a shitty person.' He smiled.

'I knew it all along, Fukuzawa.'

There was a moment of silence.

'At least you're honest with yourself.'

'I deal with my conscience every day.'

Fukuzawa didn't reply.

These were things well known to both by now and he knew by now that Mori didn't want to be consoled.

He didn't want to be told that things would change.

Mori Ougai was a man who directed the pawns, a man who dictated the rules.

He could have changed everything if he had wanted to.

Perhaps he could even have ended up running an orphanage.

But he was also a man who could kill his feelings and regrets by always choosing to make the best move, the one that would satisfy him most in the end.

It was no coincidence that he had gone from being a simple doctor to becoming the Mafia boss.

Fukuzawa had only witnessed his rise to power from afar and had also been one of the reasons that had prompted him to postpone the moment of their reunion.

The man ran the worst of the illegal trades, but Fukuzawa was the only one who knew how much those sacrifices cost him.

Seeing how Mori's actions were always animated to try to keep Marie away from that rot had always warmed his heart and knowing that he was the only person who knew that secret warmed his heart even more.

It must have been an important element because never in his life would he have imagined receiving a message in which he discovered that Marie was training with one of the Mafia executives and that Mori had practically forced her to obey him.

He tried to study the other man's face to see if he could discern what he was really feeling, but, as usual, he was an inscrutable sphinx.

He sighed.

'Did you really put it in the hands of one of your executives?'

Mori took another sip of wine.

'It wasn't an easy choice.'

Fukuzawa sat down and took some wine as well.

'You know if the problem is Umi to Dokuyaku I could have helped too.'

Mori laughed.

'It would solve her problem with her skill.' He replied piqued.

'My daughter... in your hands?'

'I remind you that I have already taken care of her.'

'Yes?' Mori asked, pretending not to remember.

'I would definitely treat her better than your executive.'

'I have no doubt about that, but you will agree that it wouldn't be much different from my keeping her in a glass bubble.'

'She would be with Yosano.'

'And with Dazai.'

'He would never touch her.'

'Of course, you also know he doesn't aspire to a painful death.'

This was also a matter that Fukuzawa couldn't fully understand.

Dazai Osamu, the demon prodigy. Known to everyone in the Mafia for being Mori's right-hand man.

Everyone knew that he aspired to have him as successor to the Mafia, but equally well known was Dazai's desire never to return to work in the shadows.

So, if Mori didn't want Marie to remain linked to the Mafia, there was no risk.

Dazai had no plans to return.

Yet if Mori esteemed him to the point of deeming him his worthy heir, why did the idea of seeing him at his daughter's side bother him so much?

'But the basic problem is certainly not that Yukichi and even you know that. If she entered the agency because of your ability, she would be able to control it, but that control would depend on you. It wouldn't be her who finally managed to master it. It wouldn't be a true victory. She would not be truly free.'

'Why now? Why didn't you do it before?'

'You know. She's my weakness.'

'And are you really sure it was a good idea to put her in the hands of one of your executives?'

'He's a former Hugo's spy.'

'Oh.' Fukuzawa commented. 'You really put her in Verlaine's hands?

Are you sure that's a good idea?'

'It's the best.'

Fukuzawa turned around, sensing the smile into which his lips had curved.

It was clear that there was something he was keeping from him that he was not intent on revealing.

His Machiavellian plans were off-limits even to him.

'I trust Verlaine. He holds in his hands the most precious thing I have.'

31/08/2024

New chapter, new secondary couple XD, hope you enjoy them too!

Next week I think I won't be able to post, see you in a Fortnight then <3