[Bungo Stray Dogs] Where Does the Dust Settle?

Two protagonists, both original characters.

Protagonist One (female):

Based on the Chinese writer Sanmao. Fourteen years old. Echo (Sanmao's English name); her Japanese name, for this story, is "Mei." Her ability is called [Phoenix], and its power is "immortal soul": upon death, her soul travels to a random time and place, then is reborn in another body.

Protagonist Two (femboy):

Based on the great writer William Shakespeare. Fourteen years old. His ability is called [A Midsummer Night's Dream]. Anyone whose eyes are touched by his tears will fall in love with the first person they see when they open their eyes.

[Content Warning]

1. The two original characters are based on well-known people. I don't dare presume to match their literary skill or knowledge of their lives and history, so let me make this clear: my versions of these characters are deliberately out of character! Out of character! Out of character!!! They are very, very, very different from the real-life writers (especially Shakespeare, for whom I humbly apologize). Please understand.

2. Oda Sakunosuke doesn't die.

In keeping with the themes of Bungo Stray Dogs, this is a story about two stray dogs, each lost and desperately searching for a reason to live. Through their encounters with the Armed Detective Agency, the Port Mafia, and others, they find a way to save their own souls.

(This is a huge pit, and updates will still be whenever I feel like it.)

The first chapter is something like a prequel...

Theme: What does it mean to be alive?