Director Fukuzawa watched as Atsushi entered the enclosure, this time in a manner much less precarious than his first two entrances. The boy stood at the edge, rocking on his feet until the tigers bounded up to him, all growls and affectionate tugs. They nudged him until he landed on his back with an 'oomph' and struggled to push them away, well-aware that he looked beyond ridiculous.

When he finally stood up and dusted himself off, he attempted to appear as dignified as possible, plucking out the stray leaves in his hair. The Director had a slight built, but there was immeasurable power beyond that and a wisdom Atsushi could not even begin to comprehend, nestled in his almost-green eyes. He commanded attention, quiet, and dignified. He gave Atsushi a subtle nod of head.

"It appears our tigers have taken a liking to you."

"Yes," Atsushi said, adding "sir" as an afterthought.

"With a little training, he'll be fantastic, don't you think?" Dazai grinned, standing next to a disgruntled Kunikida.

Director Fukuzawa nodded and turned a stern glance on Atsushi. "I trust you will dedicate yourself to the task, if you wish to work with the animals?"

"Of course, sir! Thank you very much for the opportunity!" Atsushi bowed, his bangs falling over his eyes. When he straightened up, the Director gave him a firm nod and walked off, leaving Dazai to thump Atsushi on the back in congratulation and Kunikida gave him a half-smile.

"See, it all worked out, Atsushi-kun!"

"Welcome to the zoo, kid. I hope you know what you're getting yourself into."

In the months that followed, Atsushi followed various courses and underwent training to become an official employee at the zoo. He learnt that the tigers were named 'Tatara' and 'Kagasuki' after the two constellations under the domain of Byakko, a mythical beast who took the form of a white tiger. The beast was majestic, and it was on display on the information panel at the white tiger enclosure.

It wasn't just knowledge that Atsushi gained along the way; he found friends in the employees at the zoo, all quirky in their own way. So much so they could've held their own to Dazai. He became acquainted with the rest of the animals at the zoo as well and found out that the monkeys got some kick out of pulling his long lock of hair and tugging the stray end of his belt. In the end, Atsushi let it loose in the name of style, but Kenji had given him a knowing look in passing.

The zoo became much like a family, and he managed to rent a small room in an apartment block nearby, with Dazai's help.

The Incident happened one morning when he dashed out of his apartment, in a hurry to get to the zoo because he was on duty to guide tourists around and he had woken up a little too late. In his haste, Atsushi missed a step down, and he let out a yelp as he lost his balance and toppled forward. He scrunched his eyes shut, waiting for impact but- nothing. He squinted his heterochromatic eyes open, realising that there was a firm hold on the collar of his shirt. Something was keeping him teetering on the edge, alive. He set his feet on the steps, his heart drumming away. The grip on his shirt loosened. Breathless, Atsushi turned around and bowed to his saviour, his mouth dry as he looked up. The man (or was it boy?) eyed him impassively, a sudden breeze ruffling his dark bangs that turned white at the tips.

Atsushi caught a hold of himself and grabbed the railing, heat rising up his cheeks.

"Sorry!" he stammered, his voice rising a pitch. "I'll be more careful next time!"

Before he could see the man's response, he whipped around and dashed off, his heart hammering from a mixture of embarrassment and something he couldn't quite put a name to.

Atsushi willed it out of his mind, and he was doing a fantastic job at distracting himself.

That was, until, black scrawls surfaced spiralled out of control on his palm. He watched, dazed until a yelped of shock escaped him. Tankizaki hurried over, looking baffled.

"What's wrong?"

Atsushi lifted his hand up, at a loss for words. Tanizaki frowned and walked over to him, lightly grasping his palm and looking it over. "Did you cut yourself or something? I can- Oh. Sorry," he let go of Atsushi's hand hurriedly. "I didn't mean to look."

"What do you mean?" Atsushi whispered, blinking at the carrot-haired boy.

"What?" Tanizaki squinted. "No way. This is the first time?"

"But," Atsushi started, his words failing him. "This whole time. I mean, well. I thought I didn't have a soulmate."

"Wow," Tanizaki breathed, running hand through his hair. "Your soulmate must be- I can't even find a word to describe it."

Atsushi collapsed on a nearby bench with a groan, gazing up at the scribbles that had morphed into legible characters on his palm.

"Even so, it doesn't matter."

All his life, he had been certain that even fate had forsaken him, but it was evidently not so.

"Tanizaki-san, what are the chances of ever finding your soulmate?"

"Scientifically, it has been proven that a good sixty percent of the population find their soulmate by the time they're in their late twenties. But those numbers drop drastically after you hit forty. In your case," Ranpo leaned over to tap Atsushi on the forehead, "You might have a chance at finding them."

Atsushi nearly fell off the bench at the man's sudden appearance and he clung to the edge of the wood, eyes wide open.

"Ranpo-san, please don't do that!"

The man dismissed his plea with a wave of his hand and ambled off, a magnifying glass in hand. Tanizaki walked over to sit next to Atsushi, a grin on his face.

"Well, that makes things a little more exciting, don't you think?"

"Does it, really?" Atsushi frowned. "Are you supposed to be overwhelmed by this rush of love when you see them?"

"I don't know," Tanizaki shook his head, bemused. "I have doubts about finding my own, considering Naomi tapes up the area where writings appear."

Atsushi snorted. It wasn't hard to imagine the overzealous girl on a mission to thwart her brother's attempts at finding his soulmate.

"It'd be nice if I could my soulmate," Atsushi traced the darkening lines on his palm, "but… I can't help but wonder if they don't feel the same way."

"Well, only time will tell. Don't worry 'bout it. Dazai-san's soulmate wanted nothing to do with him at first, and they fight all the time but despite all that, they're still together. It's nauseating on some level, if you think about it."

"Ah. Wait- Huh?!"

Tanizaki snickered at Atsushi's expression, rubbing off a stray tear from his eye. "Yeah. You heard me right."

"But how's it possible that I haven't even heard of this until now?" Atsushi rubbed his temples.

"Well, most of us already know," came a voice behind them. Atushi turned to see Yosano, the most experienced vet at the zoo. "But it's also because his soulmate works at Yokohama Aquarium."

Atsushi's eyes widened in realisation. "Because they're our rivals?"

"Indeed."

"How did they meet, then?" Atsushi asked, eyebrows raised in question.

"You'll find out soon enough," Yosano replied, nodding in a particular direction. Atsushi followed her gaze, realising that the topic of their conversation was making a beeline straight towards them.

"Atsushi-kun!" Dazai clapped his hands on the younger boy's shoulders with a bright smile on his face, "I have a job for you!"

Oh boy. That couldn't possibly be anything good.

Atushi was feeling a little hysterical. He attempted to tuck the loose lock of silver hair behind his ear but it slipped out and he shivered all over again. In a bid to calm himself down, he took another look at the dog-eared piece of paper in his hands. The words came to him even as he stared blankly at it so what could go wrong?

"Don't screw this up."

Of course. He looked up, facing the dark-haired man before him. Akutagawa Ryuunosuke - otherwise known as the ridiculously attractive man from his apartment block. Also an employee at Yokohama Aquarium.

"I- I'll do my best," Atsushi replied, his mouth dry. He was met with silence so he squeezed himself into the corner until the teacher walked in, startling him into a yelp. She gave him a warm smile and bowed.

"Follow me."

He nodded and followed her, Akutagawa at his side. She pushed open the door to the classroom, and he stepped in, biting his lip. The middle-schoolers were seated in the centre, chattering amongst themselves. The walls were adorned with pictures and silly posters. Akutagawa cleared his throat behind Atsushi, and the latter internally smacked himself. Upon seeing them, the students quieted down.

"We have our guests here today to talk about some of their most fascinating animals, as well what kind of work they do," the teacher began. "I hope you'll remember what I said and show them respect alright?"

A chorus of "Yes, Sensei!" followed, and the students straightened up, their curious gazes piercing Atsushi. A faint memory trickled into his mind - a ragtag group of children, their eyes filled with disdain. Atsushi shook his head, taking in a deep breath. He offered the children his best smile (praying it hadn't morphed into some hair-rising scowl).

"Good morning, everyone. I'm Atsushi from the Yokohama Zoo. How many of you have been there?"

A few hands went up, and Atsushi nodded. "That's great! Then, maybe you've already met my best friends." He held up a picture of Tatara and Kagasuki, and the teenagers burst into excited chatter.

"They've been my companions ever since I started working at the zoo and I've come to learn a lot of things. I'm really glad to be given the opportunity to tell you all about how amazing the experience has been. Akutagawa here has a lot to tell you about his time at the Yokohama Aquarium," he gestured to to the older man who was watching the adolescents expressionlessly.

Good going, he thought, snide. His discomfort was slowly evaporating.

It was almost as if Atsushi had spoken it out loud when Akutagawa turned to him, his piercing grey eyes narrowed. Atsushi swallowed and turned back to the children, his smile faltering a little under the dark gaze. "I hope you'll enjoy our visit today!" he bowed, resolutely avoiding looking at Akutagawa who had followed his lead. He would not lose to this good-looking ice prince, for sure.

Not sure when I'll post the next one, but enjoy for now! Sorry if I haven't replied to your reviews orz