#also some sskk as a treat

[sableeira]

skk started calling each other babygirl as a joke… turns out somewhere along the way it stopped being a joke and became an endearment that follows their insults

[im-still-watching-anime]

writing bsd fics really is like some sort of palate cleanser for me like anytime i get unhappy with the way i write i go work on a bsd wip for a while and for some reason it’s always so much more relaxing than any other writing i do

[neevblanc]

„curious” ♡

a/n —hey all! hope ur doin' well, drink water if you haven't! have this as a treat. it's 2k and some more but i cant be bothered to check for specifics. (p.s sorry if the tarot aspects of this are wonky! i did my best to research and i pulled reference from my sister's experience with tarot cards/reading.)

૮꒰ ˶• ༝ •˶꒱ა ♡

-ˋˏ’✄┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈

Dazai Osamu x GN!reader

Tags— 22/ada dazai, flirting?, pre-slash, don't question why reader's given a key, reader works under ango but he's also they're dad figure, it's a whole thing, mentions of sskk though not explicitly platonic or romantic, take that as you wish, dazai's infuriating habit of burying feelings and then one day he'll die

CW/TW— dazai. (/j, none i can think of.)

note — reader's ability in this is based on one that my friend chose for our self-ship au. "Teacher of Truth by Saneatsu Mushanokoji: The user can employ tarot cards to gain insight into the past, current, and possible future situations. The user needs to know what each of the cards mean in order to properly interpret what they say." it's from a post on tumblr, but I couldn't find it for the life of me! i'll credit if i can. anyway, it's been tweaked a little so i'm here to explain. in this, reader can choose to use their ability during a reading or not, but the tarot cards are always personal to them. people they know will sometimes show in the cards if they're important to them.

The next time Dazai sees you, it’s well before the ADA opens for the day. He’d admittedly had a rough night—sleep evaded him like always, and he hadn’t had dinner because of his own laziness. His futon was impossibly comfy. How was he meant to part with its loving warmth?

The Door to the agency creaks open, the sound not unlike the groan of the cafe floorboards only steps away. One of Dazai’s favorite activities was purposely seeking out the creaky floorboards and dancing on them so loud Kunikida would have to berate him, of course. He was intimately familiar with the annoying sounds this old building could make.

The office is darker than during working hours, but he notices the meager amount of lights still switched on. Distantly, he knows Kunikida would’ve blown a gasket about the electric bill if he had found them still on. He takes a step into the room-

Something rustles. Downstairs, an old radio plays a song he does not recognize. Pigeons flutter and coo from outside the window.

Somebody was in the agency, and had it been any of his fellow detectives, he’d have known.

“Hmmm, what’s this,” he mutters absently, volume low enough to alert whoever it was had decided to trespass.

”Dazai-san?” a soft voice calls, and Dazai pauses for a moment. A short, hollow sound follows—cards shuffling. He bites the inside of his cheek. How curious.

”Last I checked, you don’t clock in with the rest of us measly agents. Surely Ango’s fuming by now?” He hums, stepping into view of you. you’re sat at Atsushi’s desk, bag perched on top of Atsushi’s empty report trays. Dazai almost smirks at the sight— silly Atsushi, always rushing to complete everything in a timely manner. One day, he’d get him to turn them in later, hopefully months later- like he did.

”Hm, no. I clocked in earlier, but Ango wanted me over here early. Something about a mission I have to hand over to Fukuzawa-dono. I got a key from him last time, so I just let myself in.” you explained. Dazai pulled his own chair out and collapsed into it, peering down at what your hands were busying themselves with.

He realizes they’re tarot cards. Thick and sturdy under your fingers, you set them up neatly in front of yourself. The backs are a matte purple, decorated with silver details that glint as the sunrise light hits them for just a fraction of a second. The illustrations seem to flicker with movement, almost like snapshots of time shifting through an old camera, frame after frame.

”What’s got you so busy?” he asks, exaggeratingly leaning over to look at the cards. You laugh and smile, expression wobbly. He notes the change. You briefly shake out the bracelet laying on your wrist, almost nervously. You lay the last card on the desk’s surface. Atsushi’s cute cat clock ticks from where it’s placed near his report trays.

“I do readings for the day early in the morning, just in case. Sometimes, I don’t even use my ability.” You explain, keeping your voice low so as not to break the morning peace. Dazai glances at the cat clock. Soon, the secretaries and Kunikida will clock in and begin their work day. He focuses back on you and grins, intrigued.

“Anxious, then? I guess the ability to see the future will do that to ‘ya.” Dazai sighed, crossing his legs and resting his chin on his hand. He was content to watch you finish setting the cards down in a formation he admittedly did not understand.

” What does that one mean?” he says, pointing to one of the cards. Its flickering surface shows a woman with mint-colored hair pulled up into a bun. Behind her, there’s a black mass, and she seems to be standing in a graveyard. There are two Xs at the top of the card. You redirect your attention to the card he’s hovering his finger over and smile.

”That’s Judgment—renewal, reflection, awakening, or reckoning. For a personal reading, it would mean going through a period of self-evaluation or maybe even trying to understand the people around you and your situation more.” You explain, seemingly done with the spread and setting down the other cards nearby. Dazai purses his lips.

”Sounds gloomy. Lame!” He huffs, upset by his choice. you gasp and narrow your eyes.

”Don’t call them lame! You’ll piss them off, Dazai.” You hiss, smacking him on the arm. Dazai grins and leans closer, smile growing coy.

”Really now? And how exactly does one do that?” Dazai prods. You stick your tongue out and cross your arms.

“Not telling. Now shut up and let me do my reading.” You grumble, eyes flicking over the cards. Dazai whines and throws himself forward, almost shoving you off of Atsushi’s chair.

”Dude!” You yelp, hands scrambling to grasp his coat as he rights himself. Dazai grabs you by the shoulders and shakes, intent on being the biggest possible nuisance.

”That’s boring! Do your reading laterrrr; it won’t matter, right? Ne- do a reading for me! I wanna know my future,” He begs, grinning. You blink and scowl, pushing him away.

”First off, it would matter. Doing a reading later would be a completely different outcome. Just wait. All I have to do is interpret these. I’ll do yours after.” You grumble, adjusting their sleeves and settling back into the chair. Dazai harrumphs but settles into his own chair to watch you silently read the cards.

You focus back on the cards, and Dazai settles himself by watching you idly. You’re dressed in what you always wear to work, but it’s casual enough to know doubt have been breaking the dress code had you not been working under Ango for so long.  There’s a small scrunch to your nose as you focus on your task, and Dazai can spot how you run your tongue over your teeth in thought. Dazai looks away pointedly. Taking a few breaths, he forcibly clears his mind. How odd.

”Okay, done.” You hum, straightening and starting to pick up the cards. He shifts so his whole body is faced toward you. You take gentle care of the cards, putting them back into the deck.

”Why do they flicker like that? You aren’t using your ability,” he asks, curious about the shifting images on the cards. You shrug.

”Don’t know. It happens no matter what deck I use, though I prefer using this one. The images just shift into the same ones most of the time, though some have changed over time.” You explain, shuffling the cards. Dazai reaches out and hovers over your hand before poking the back of it gently. You let him despite knowing the outcome.

The images on the cards still lying on the table flicker, completely uninterrupted, even as Dazai feels the shiver of his ability eating away at yours. He hums and pulls away. He hadn’t been paying attention when he jostled you earlier, but you were right- they were unaffected.

”Strange, but not unheard of. Some ability effects aren’t considered active enough for my ability to erase.” Dazai says, allowing you to continue. you finish and present him with the deck, pulling away when he goes to take them.

”Don’t be mean to them. They’ll be mean to you. You can’t even think anything negative; they’ll know. You’re gonna cut the deck in 3, okay? We’ll do a simple reading.” you explain, and only once Dazai agrees (crosses his heart and hopes to die!) is he gently handed the cards.

”What do you want to read? We can focus on love, or money, or your career, things like that.” You say. Dazai ponders for a moment before sniffing, mouth settled into a pompous pout.

”I want to know if someone will finally be interested in a double suicide with me.” He huffs. You scoff.

”You’re insane. Okay, so love. Think about that while you cut them.” You nod, giving him the go-ahead. He runs his fingers over the well-loved edges and slots his thumbs through the deck where it feels right, setting the individual cuts down on the desk before them. He tries to take it as seriously as possible, though thinking about love has always made him squirm and itch beneath his skin.

You reach over once he’s done and clear your throat, carefully picking the top cards on each deck and laying them out in front of him. On the left, the first card flipped is a wheel, seemingly in the sky and surrounded by clouds. The clouds float by calmly, though Dazai can’t find anything particularly personal to you the way some of the other cards would show.

It’s made a little more difficult considering the card’s orientation- upside down.

You hum at it before moving on. The card in the middle is revealed, and this one piques his interest. He grins a little at the image. Two figures hold goblets in their hands, strings of power rising from the cups and meeting above their heads to form a Yin and Yang sign. The figures are startingly familiar- one dark-haired, the other light-haired. Accents in their hair match each other, silver and black clashing and melding nicely. This one’s facing right-side up. The image flickers to show the energy that swirls around, occasionally circling their respective holders.

The last one flicks onto the wooden desk with a hollow sound. The image is soft, not unlike the first one with the blue sky. A sun takes up the upper half, rays pronounced against the sky. Ttheire’s a little kid in the illustration, their beaming face scrunched up in happiness. There’s a flag clutched in one hand, with the other gripping onto the mane of the white horse they’re perched upon. Sunflowers frame them, peaking over the illustrated garden wall behind them.

It’s an endlessly endearing picture, and from the smile, he has a feeling he knows who it is. Like the last one, it’s right-side up.

You settle your chin against your palm, leaning on the table with a hum.

”That’s….a really nice reading, actually.” You move to point at the cards. Dazai sits patiently with his hands on his lap. Nothing more fascinating than seeing someone in their element, he supposed.

”That first one is The Wheel of Fortune. Upside down, it’s a little darker. It represents your past,” you pause, looking at him for a moment. “I think for you, it’s focused on the feeling of helplessness—lack of power or control…like you had love but couldn’t control how and when you lost it,” you say, your voice soft. Dazai fights to ignore the discomfort building in his throat.

”Well, what can I say? My dark past haunts me,” he bemoans, and you huff a soft laugh. You move on to the next card- the cups. You look a little embarrassed by this one.

”This one is the present. Two cups represent…well, partnership. More specifically, the realization of a new partnership. This one can be pretty romantic. I guess you’ve got something to look forward to soon,” you say, pointedly ignoring the images of his two kohais. He grins, sparing you of the teasing. He didn’t know how well you even knew Akutagawa- but it was amusing to see everyone could see what those two denied vehemently.

”The last one is the future. You got The Sun, which is actually really sweet.” Through your embarrassment, Dazai watches a sweet smile grow on your face. He matches it easily.

“It means joy and success, for you in particular. It means…whatever or whoever your two cups is for, you’ll be very happy together.” You say, and Dazai sighs wistfully.

”Maybe someone will finally want to commit suicide with me! This news might keep me alive a day longer just yet,” Dazai coos. You groan and take a deep breath, seemingly ignoring him as you duck your head down and then start to put the cards back.

”You better hope you didn’t piss this deck off, Dazai.” you huff, glaring. Dazai pouts, cradling his face in his hands.

“What?! I followed all your rules; I would never,” he whines. You flip him off and busily tuck the cards into a soft leather pouch. He lets his hands drop and watches for a moment.

”Thanks for the reading,” Dazai says, his voice back to normal. You glance at him and smile.

”Yeah, no problem. It’s nice to read without my ability once in a while,” you admit, expression soft. He grins. Something stirs in his chest.

”You can read me whenever you want, lovely.” He purrs jokingly. You startle, flushing. You glare and kick him with your foot.

”Don’t say shit like that,” you mutter. Dazai whines out a laugh, having settled on teasing you until he could see the smoke coming out your ears.

Before he could continue, the door creaks open, and the overhead lights flick on. Multiple people come shuffling in, and Dazai can hear Kunikida conversing lowly with Fukuzawa. The secretaries also file in, chattering contently amongst themselves. Fukuzawa and Kunkida pause only to greet them both. you wave politely, and Dazai salutes them both.

you blink your eyes to adjust to the light now flooding the room. Dazai huffs and stands with a groan.

”Alright, I’ve got five minutes to get out of here. You’ll be going in to see Shachou, right?” He asks, stretching. you stand and nod, giving him a look.

”Where are you going?” you ask, picking up your bag. He groans at the way his back pops as he rights himself from his stretching.

”Home. I only came here 'cause I was bored. But in the long run, it’ll be a lot funnier if Kunikida’s mad all morning when I don’t show up~” He snickers. you shake your head, a smile pulling at your mouth.

“You’re so lame. See you, then.” You sighed, heading down the hall Kunikida and Fukuzawa had disappeared down.

”And yet you love me. ‘Till we meet again,” he calls, pointedly ignoring the yell you let out.

”Whatever!” you yelped, and Dazai let the agency door click closed behind him.

He grins. Curious indeed.

note — can you tell i love brothers! atsushi and dazai? also, the woman in Judgement is Mizuki Tsujimura, who I headcanon is pretty good friends with reader in this one. :) please let me know if there are any pronoun inconsistencies! this was originally written with she/her pronouns, and i did my best to fix it to match the gender neutral style i like to use for tumblr stuffs.

©neevblanc 2024 // do not plagiarize or repost

[hannigramislife]

I am not a dazai hater by any means, but you talk so respectfully (and make a lot of sense) about your opinions on him I can't help but really enjoy your blog! I particularly loved your ship opinions posts. Any other characters you want to share ship opinions on?

Hi friend!!

I'm glad I came off as respectful and left a positive impression on you! I do a lot of shit-posting about Dazai, but I do feel like I am at least fair to him when I am analyzing his actions? Other times, yeah, I'm just indulging in my desire to beat him bloody. Just, like, once. To get it out of my system XD. For science.

And the ship posts! Those were soooo fun to make. And oh, let me think about any other ships and my thoughts on them...

Fyolai (Fyodor / Nikolai) – Remember how I was like "there's just some things you don't write if you don't want people to ship two characters?" This is another case. This is the reason I disagree with people that go like "bsd is the only manga where no ships are necessary," like bro, there's so many things wrong with that sentence. It is absolutely necessary to make a bond such as these two's feel almost tangible to the viewers. It is essential to understand Nikolai's emotional dependance on Fyodor as a driving factor to his actions. Nikolai is orbiting around him, and you can see Fyodor having a genuine interest in this man, who doesn't play a big role in his grand plans. To me, these two feel kinda like Soukoku? Something something "the stars aligned so we could meet." 10/10 ship.

Ranpoe (Ranpo / Poe) – What God do I need to pray to in oder to get about 50 OVAs with these two?? Season 4 Ranpoe was the biggest treat and gift to me, personally. I love love love their dynamic so much. Like, yeah, Poe idolizes Ranpo, but he is now just as much in Ranpo's radar as well! Ranpo imprinted on him, he is Ranpo's emotional support rich boyfriend for fuck's sake. The way Ranpo uses his ability seamlessly?? Like it belongs to him?? Like he's so goddamn comfortable with it?? And what about the, "What would I do with myself if Ranpo-kun were to die..?” They're literally soulmates. They met and clicked so hard, they found each other, they suit each other, they complete each other. 10 million/10.

AtsuLucy (Atsushi / Lucy) – Firstly, I love Lucy, I think she's a great character, I love her design and personality and ability and everything. My baby. However, I have no particular attachment to this ship. It's not bad, and it's perfectly valid, but I don't see like- a need for it, you know? They understand each other, have stuff in common, and impacted each other's lives; I do love when two characters save each other left and right, so kudos for that. Honestly, they seem like they'd be absolutely amazing friends, really close, and honestly, I would love to see Atsushi have such a friendship, I think it would be good for him, but personally I don't see them in a romantic light. 9/10 ship due to the lack of feels I got from their interactions.

HiguGin (Higuchi / Gin) – I think that they're amazing and I would die for them. I need a spin-off of them. I need at least a whole WAN episode of them going on a date and shopping and eating ice cream and training and going to the beach– basically everything because they'd have the best relationship ever. I can just see them cuddling on a couch and watching TV as sskk fight over the last dumping in the kitchen. I need more about them like I need air. Also, petition for Beast Higuchi and Beast Gin to take over the Mafia. For reasons. 10/10 ship.

FukuMori (Fukuzawa / Mori) – Yeah, yeah, they're divorced Double Black and whatever, but let's be real for a second; no one can convince me that when Fukuchi first showed up, y'all's reaction was not, "Hold on a second Fukuzawa, what about your husband?!" The way Fukuchi behaved with Ranpo screamed new boyfriend trying to gain the son's approval, I was dying XD. "But Fukuchi knew Fukuzawa first!!" Yeah, yeah, I don't care– I'm not a zskk shipper until Fukuchi enters the screen. Let Fukuzawa and Mori be the yin and yang pillars of Yokohama. 9/10 ship because Mori is *sigh* a bad guy. Sad.

Odango (Oda / Ango) – They are married. No, I will not accept criticism. This is canon to me.

KuniBram (Kunikida / Bram) – My sister has decided they're also married and coparenting, so the conclusion is that they're married and coparenting.

I can't think of any ships right now, but do mention if there's one you like that I have missed!

(Honorary Mention: Dead Apple Trio) – So, we agree they fucked, right?? That wasn't subtext in the slightest, that was the greatest amount of subtle and yet ostentatious display of repressed homosexuality I've seen since SuperWhoLock hit this website. Dazai did not look that good to simply not be pushed against a table/wall. That's a disservice to him.

[kyouka-supremacy]

Hot take, Bones doesn't deserve the amount of hate they are getting. Some, I understand but the amount I'm seeing is ridiculous. They have multiple projects they're working on and I get it, rushing through BSD isn't great but they can't animate everything. Also... the way they animated Aku makes more sense. Hard to give a soft smile losing such a large amount of blood from your neck.

Mmh, I understand that it can be disheartening to see something you like so heavily criticized, but I do believe the studio is doing some major mess up this season and that people are legitimately enraged.

I'm the first one to say that we're all here to have fun and there's not really any point on focusing on things we dislike, but I think it's also valid to be upset when something you care about a lot is treated unlovingly, and people are in their own right to express such disappointment. Moreover, I feel like in this case there is a point in expressing one's disdain. It's important to be critic of the media we consume: we could all pretend to be satisfied and settle on complacency, but wouldn't that be deeply detrimental? Otherwise, sometimes it's important to acknowledge and even state loud that you don't like something, because it's only by recognizing something is wrong that people can get to work to change it and improve. If we all tamely pretended we liked the new season, if there was no one to ever evaluate its direction, animation quality, pace, there's little hope for any of them to improve, simply because there's no need to change something people are happy with.

Theodor W. Adorno is my favorite sociologist. He once said, “the splinter in your eye is the best magnifying-glass available”. With that he meant that pain is the greatest source of knowledge. Pain allows to see things that otherwise would go unnoticed: only by acknowledging pain one can understand that something is wrong, that something needs to be changed and improved. I think it's always important to state: “this is wrong”, because nothing can ever be fixed if you don't first recognize it's broken.

Personally, I do believe what Bones studio is doing is wrong. I don't think it's fair to have such a drastic quality drop with the last season just like it wasn't in the third. I don't think it's right to not have an original opening sequence nor an ending sequence (that we know of). I don't think it's right to have such a fast pace that you can't keep up with the events. I don't think it's right to have a season filled with reused animations. I don't think it's right to have very little animation to the point there's up to 36 seconds of the same static frame in a single scene. I don't think it's right to have a quality drop in the drawings and quality inconsistency between one episode and the next. I think it's outrageous that the Fukuchi vs. sskk fight was so poorly animated and completely striped of any emotion. I don't think it's right of them to assassinate Akutagawa's chapter 88 panel. But most of all, I don't think it's right to have a season come out three months after the other. I don't think that's in any way ethically sustainable, and I don't think anyone needed that. I don't think it's right that studios don't get that people don't want an uninterrupted flow of content, people want quality content, and it's important to say that, or they'll never get it. I think they messed up greatly with this season, and I don't think being working on multiple projects can use as an excuse in any way, because as a studio you should be able to tell when you've got your hands too full to handle another project without meeting the quality standard. If Bones studio was working on too many projects, they simply shouldn't have set this season up for release so early, because again, NO ONE needs a new season after just three months.

I can see why you would say that the way they animated Akutagawa's last words makes more sense. It definitely is more rushed, and ugly. I guess one could argue that it conveys how death is precipitous and unpleasant, and doesn't leave space for last words. ... But I highly doubt that much was intentional. The sskk scene in its entirety was so poorly curated that I can hardly see the direction make thematically relevant choices. Even in the rare hypothesis it was a conscious and intentional directing choice, the outcome was still extremely underwhelming, because the moment itself doesn't feel rushed in particular since it's coming right after an episode that was rushed in its entirety.

I agree Akutagawa's death scene in the manga isn't realistic the slightest. But realism in that moment was never what the reader was asking for in the first place! It's a moment of conclusion for Akutagawa. It's the end of his cruel and hated life, and the author chooses to end it in kindness. By giving him a moment to smile and redeem himself, the author is showing Akutagawa the compassion he never received in his violence ridden life. Death scenes in media are almost never meant to be realistic! Their main aim is to move the audience, not to portray a realistic death. It's part of the deal the audience makes with the media the second they start interacting with it, to suspend their belief in order to enjoy the media at its fullest. It's, fundamentally, the same reason why you wouldn't question the characters having superpowers.

All the same, if you find yourself to be on average satisfied with the anime, that's perfectly valid too!!! I'm sorry people's disappointment may have resulted disheartening, and I understand it's hard to avoid, but my best advice is to try and curate your own internet experience to be so that you see the least negativity as possible. You might want to consider blocking and unfollowing people whose comments you find unpleasant, even if it's just temporary for the time the season airs. If it gets too much, refrain from visiting the main tag on Wednesdays when new episodes drop if that can work for you. I recognize we as a fandom could work better to build a space that is enjoyable for people who are liking the new season and wouldn't want to meet so much negativity, and I'm the first to admit I've been quite inconsistent in tagging my posts recently, so in the future I'll try to tag negativity accordingly. I do appreciate you for reaching out and sharing your opinion Anon! Let's all work together to build a better fandom space for everyone (ﾉ◕ヮ◕)ﾉ*.✧

[asher-agere]

Hi!!! Hi ashhh!! Hiii!!! Its my again the anon who asked for sskk headcannons. I think that at this point i should get an id emoji neh? Hm.... lets see... i have two seals plushies so lets go with 🦭! If you don't mind of couse hahaha

Anyway, thougths on a sleepy little dazai with cg chuuya? It's on their time in the mafia and both just got out of an exausting task mori gave for them... :3

I'd love to see your take on this qwq

(Totally not projecting a little because im reaally exausted with school stuff sjhskansj what? Never...)

-🦭 (ilyyyyy)

Yay another identified anon! I’ve noticed some anons are using emojis without asking, which I don’t mind! So those who are doing so don’t worry hehe. I can just get very confused cause I’m like- I don’t remember this emoji, it’d be so rude to say that though… Such a cute way to pick your emoji though! And school can be so exhausting :( I LOVE YOU TOO OMG PEOPLE ARE SO NICE

Warning! These two sillies are not standard sillies! There will be implied sensitive topics such as suicide, self harm, and body hatred. And there’s a brief mention of smoking! Stay safe everyone, don’t read or interact if these topics might be triggering!

Sleepy Little Dazai + Caregiver Chuuya

𓆝 𓆟 𓆞 𓆝 𓆟

₊ ⊹ Working in the mafia can be such hard work! It’s always exhausting, mentally or physically… A lot of the time both actually. Especially with someone like Mori as your boss. He expects the best and only the best will survive. So they’re forced to be the best. Overall it makes every single mission exhausting and for Dazai, sometimes he just wants to be a little baby! Babies don’t need to work and stress about this stuff, so why does he have to? It’s no fair…

⛦ If after a mission Dazai starts feeling small then he tries pushing it away. Chuuya must be just as tired as he is, if not more so considering Chuuya is the brawn to his brains. What Chuuya needs is some rest. Not the burden of looking after a pathetic baby like himself. So he just ignores it! But it isn’t that easy. It isn’t long before it starts causing… Problems. Dazai is very familiar with the issues of pushing off his regression, but the symptoms never get any easier no matter how many times he does it

₊ ⊹ Everything starts off feeling a little fuzzy, a gentle request from his body which he ignores. But then it works up into a headache. Easy, Dazai is used to headaches! He can just tighten his bandages, pressure helps relieve pain! But doing things feels really hard… So he ends up sitting in the bathroom holding useless bandages and working himself up into a panicked frenzy. It just makes him feel smaller and smaller by the second… It’s not fair. Why can’t he just be normal? The Demon Prodigy shouldn’t be acting like a child

⛦ Luckily for times like this, Dazai isn’t trusted in a bathroom alone for very long (He doesn’t have a great track record). It isn’t long before Chuuya is knocking on the door to check on him. Chuuya will come into the bathroom and gently wrap the bandages around Dazai’s head for him (It’s much nicer when Chuuya does it anyway…), nice and snug to ward off headaches! Dazai is always quick to insist he isn’t a baby, so Chuuya will calmly explain that he’d do this even if Dazai wasn’t a baby. In that voice. That voice that is clearly intended for a baby. But how can he explain that?

₊ ⊹ Nicknames time! As usual the Soukoku classic, Chuuya definitely calls Dazai “Mackerel”! It’s especially helpful when Dazai claims he doesn’t want to be treated like a baby since Chuuya calls him that all the time. Overall it’s just trying to keep up the teasing atmosphere! Dazai doesn’t like change, so Chuuya will also just call him things like “Dummy” a lot. But sometimes when Dazai is deep enough into baby space he won’t object to things Chuuya can call him “Baby”, Dazai loves this one! He just usually objects to it. I also think Dazai calls Chuuya “Chibi”! It’s hilariously ironic considering how small Dazai feels, but of course he’s gotta act like he’s in control!

⛦ Missions can get messy, lots of injuries and sensory issues. Dazai tries to just quietly sit still as Chuuya treats any injuries, but by the end of it he’s a shaking sniffling mess… Especially something like stitches. Is it safer to take him to a doctor? Yes. But the mental toll that would take on him is to much. Better to just let Chuuya take care of it. Plus something like blood on his clothes? That feels so sticky and gross! He needs it off. But he doesn’t like bathing because he feels so exposed. I think seeing his body is a reminder that he exists, a reminder that he doesn’t appreciate

₊ ⊹ Bath time solution? Bubble baths! Bubble baths hide his body. Plus with Chuuya helping to wash him Chuuya can use special smelling soaps to encourage relaxation! I think Dazai struggles to sleep, poor baby definitely has nightmares, so sleepy time bath scents definitely help! Plus Chuuya gives him some clothes (Chuuya buys clothes that are too big for him so that they can fit Dazai). Being surrounded by the smell of Chuuya, cologne he uses, laundry detergent, maybe even the faint smell of cigarettes. It reminds him of Chuuya so it’s relaxing

⛦ As Dazai starts settling down Chuuya makes him some nice warm angel milk! He serves it in a sippy cup (Just to avoid spills! Not because he’s a baby. Of course not). Then they can just snuggle up on the couch and watch a show! Dazai hates the idea of sleeping, so Chuuya can’t create a sleepy atmosphere or the babies onto him! Both the couch instead of the bed and a show that should take focus are a very awake atmosphere! And with Dazai not thinking about sleeping he’s able to drift off in Chuuya’s arms

𓆝 𓆟 𓆞 𓆝 𓆟

I love these two so so so so much. I have more thoughts on them but I tried limiting this to just relating to after mission/sleepy baby. ANYWAY HAVE A SUPER AWESOME AMAZING WONDERFUL DAY/NIGHT EVERYONE

[littencloud9]

Can I ask your top 10 fav fics ever (from any fandom, if you don't mind)?

Also, just curious, is there a story behind your name "littencloud9 "?

oooh! GREAT QUESTION i’m gonna rec my beautiful clever amazing mutuals’ fics obviously. and some others. i mainly read jjk and bsd fics so that’s probably all this list will have haha 😭

(also littencloud9 comes from my fav pokémon litten, + cloud9 was TECHNICALLY inspired by the song cloud 9 by beach bunny! but it’s a cute phrase so i stuck them together LOL)

in no particular order,

—> sun comes streaming through the window (& i can't sleep anymore) by @that-was-anticlimactic

| bsd, gen, teen and up, ~21k, kenji & ada

| good morning to one of my fav fics EVER. i have never sobbed so hard reading something. corey is the queen of kenji fics and this one is no exception i LOVE how the dynamics with kenji and the rest were portrayed and how much of a family they were 🥹🫶 (i also love her other fics.. the kunichuu ones and the pyramid ones especially you guys should check them out 🔪)

—> though i burn, how could i fall? by @zukkaoru

| bsd, gen, teen and up, 8.6k, kunikidazai + kunikida & ranpo

| HFHSGDHSS. i am always obsessed with grace’s kunikida characterisation. ada president kunikida is something that can be so personal. and i love that he had people helping him through the stress even when he pushed them away. TEARS. (also check out their other fics she has lots lots and i really like the tachigin, aku siblings, and kunichuuzai ones 🫶)

—> we can plant a memory garden by @ryuvnosuke

| bsd gen, mature, 4.2k, kunikida & yosano (during the great war)

| sorry not sorry for continuously reccing gen fics in this ship-focused fandom. anyway HELLO?? the set-up of this fic is already so so interesting, and i adored yosano’s character here!! and the description of.. pretty much everything, was super chilling. it was such a fantastic read 🫶 (i also adore ela’s tachigin fics and sskk fics too. she gets akutagawa like no one else)

—> reading between the lines by @spliqi

| bsd, m/m, teen and up, 12.3k, shin soukoku

| did you guys know that im spliqi’s biggest fan actually. their sskk characterisation is legit my favourite thing EVER i am always cackling when reading her fics. this one is my fav especially because of how ridiculously stupid yet clever they are. and how they cannot confess like normal people. highly recommend!! 🤍

—> baby, drive slow by zonnie

| jjk, m/m, mature, 15.8k, itafushi

| i am a SUCKER for roadtrip AUs. this fic was so so fun and i loved yuuji the greenest flag ever. i also love zonnie’s other itfs works! also megumi and nobara’s dynamic in their fics are the best thing ever i am obsessed 💗💗

—> quiet quitting is easy when your boss has already held your funeral and you’re technically still legally dead by @gothicakvtagawa

| bsd, m/m, teen and up, 24.5k, shin soukoku

| the sskk writers in this fandom truly get it. this fic was SUCH a great ride, and i loved that other character’s povs (kunikida, sigma, chuuya etc) were explored! i always love post-canon fics so this was such a treat. and fukuzawa father of the YEAR award in this fic. overall lovely lovely fic, amazing characterisation, and fun flow!! (their other sskk fics are also GEMS check those out)

—> and all i loved, i loved alone by featherx

| bsd, m/m, mature, 121.6k, ranpoe

| i always wonder how user featherx is doing after dropping this BOMB of a fic. it explores poe’s life from the start and i LOVED EVERY SECOND. the descriptions of how his ability feels, meeting new people, meeting karl, meeting the guild members, his relationship with ranpo and so on. exploration of sexuality too. overall this fic reads like the bsd poe wikipedia to me because of how on point everything feels. LOVE it

—> i hope i die first by @amythecinnabunny

| bsd, m/m, teen and up, major character death, 28.7k, shin soukoku

| yeah… this fic sent me into spirals. i sobbed so hard i had to take bathroom breaks. the epilogue was truly the cherry on top. if you wanna break your heart this fic is for you (also love her other fics! esp the higuchi & the sheep series, and the babysitting series!)

—> here and where you are by cityboys

| jjk, m/m + gen, teen and up, 17.3k, itafushi + jjk first years trio

| okay. i cry pretty easily reading things. but this one. ohhhhh my god. this one legit had me ugly crying for a whole hour. this one destroyed me. megumi is my pookie we know this so reading this HEARTWRENCHING fic from his pov was just. ouuuugh. basically yuuji’s memories are erased and he goes back to being a normal boy. but megumi and nobara remember him. enough said. please read this i was genuinely devastated

—> hey son, i killed your daddy by missingnooo

| jjk, gen + m/m, teen and up, 5.6k, gojo & megumi (+ satosugu and itafushi)

| THIS FIC!!! gojo and megumi are surprisingly underrated in this fandom which is crazy cause they’re literally related guys. but this was an emotional rollercoaster and i was hooked every second. gojo’s character felt very true to the story idk how to explain it but it was amazing. i cried. highly recommend

-

THATS 10!! i only dared to tag my mutuals aksjfksbd but heres my fic recs. thank you for the ask! <33

[play-rough]

Although I’m a staunch toddler Atsushi truther, a headcanon I have about him that I just adore is that it is of unanimous understanding that if he wasn’t a little then he’d be a caregiver. I imagine Sushi being very desperate to help with caring for other littles, especially babies (rip to Dazai, your remaining shred of dignity is in the clamped grip of a four year old), obviously this is partly due to ✨orphan trauma✨ but he’s also just a naturally caring person who has a lot of empathy for other littles that make him decent in anticipating their needs, cause he knows what it’s like to be in that position.

Akutagawa I feel has similar potential- he’s an alpha, but he possesses enough qualities, like his desire for approval from Dazai, to be mistaken for a submissive (are there omegas in this au? I’d have to guess yes if there are alphas but I don’t know for sure). I like the plan of them being the inverse to SKK but I feel like making them both seem just a tiny bit incompatible with their classifications would add a little kick to their dynamic.

But hey, that’s just a film theory 🧍

-🍓

I agree that Atsushi is a very kind and caring person and I could totally see him as a caregiver, my want to make SSKK mirror SKK swayed a lot of the choices 😭 but Atsushis immediate investment in akutagawa and his wellbeing despite them being on opposite sides (and being warned that akutagawa is dangerous) just shows how kind he is, and i agree it’s orphan trauma you know what it’s like to not be treated with that kindness so Atsushi always makes sure to extend it

Also absolutely in love with Atsushi babying Dazai because I think it’s so sweet for them to have the somewhat irresponsible mentor and kindhearted mentee dynamic that flips to shy baby and kid who is now his older brother 😭 it’s just such a fun range they can spend a morning with Dazai begging Atsushi to do his paperwork (atsushi refuses) and by afternoon Atsushi is begging Dazai to let him feed him goldfish crackers (Dazai refuses) 😭

Ok the bomb of a question of are there omegas? Idk i guess no, just because I think it opens up a lot of cans of worms that I just don’t want to think about and also it turns it more into a classic omegaverse story? no because i would have to think about what that does to my world building lol 😔 it was actually going to be just strictly littles, caregivers, and neutrals and i added in alphas entirely because i couldn’t really see Chuuya fitting in as a caregiver and idk for some reason i liked the idea of him being a big scary alpha who was so sweet and gentle to the baby 🥺

So my insane lore (or a short version) is that when humans where evolving we kept more animalistic traits, mostly effecting social and relationship dynamics. Some humans evolved to thrive on providing care, to ensure pack wouldn’t be without people to help the weak, sick, or young. Children had low survival rates though, and losing them often had devastating effects on the mental health of the humans who evolved these caretaking instincts, so in response other humans evolved to develop childlike mindsets once they reached adulthood. This ensured that even if that year’s baby humans survival rate was low, there were always plenty of humans that would thrive on receiving that care. Meanwhile, groups of humans hones in on hunting and defending skills, over centuries gaining abilities to sense danger and instinctively act and protect potentially vulnerable pack members. Between what is now known as alphas, caregivers, and littles, mixed in with neutrals (humans who continued to evolve without showing specific traits of the other groups), humans created their own unique pack dynamic.

Imagine that happens over a shit ton of centuries and we also go through societal modernization to reach the present day 😭 where a lot of these instincts are now just traits that are largely unused because we don’t hunt and gather food and we don’t have high youngster death rate (which in modern days littles actually moreso help curb overpopulation)

I also have a bunch of insane ideas like how is religion affected by this world?? Was Jesus an alpha??? Is there history of littles independence rights movements?? Probably, they’re probably a protected discriminatory class idk if that’s the right term this ask has gotten out of hand 😵

[daz4i]

throwing some ideas for. possibilities

time traveling shenanigans - kunikida mentioned it, reminding the audience that this is indeed a thing that can happen in the bsdverse, so we have it in the back of our minds when it's used in the story again, which. given how pear shaped everything has gotten. seems to be a very feasible option

light snow - why bring tanizaki in now of all times? and leave a cliffhanger where he might die, right after kunikida tells him to use it to escape? ain't no way he's dying now lmao. speaking of-

tanizaki going sicko mode - i want to see it happen. it will. it must. please.......

everyone else will "die" (get sucked into ame no gozen, and we don't quite know what it entails) leaving only sskk alive, to connect to the anime's ending. maybe aya too bc fyodor did make a promise. maybe she'll help them even

^so, atsushi will use his cutting through abilities thingie to rent that thing asunder - to shreds, i say.

the book? - i mean. i can only assume the reason fyodor even did all that is to create a distraction in order to go get it (one can also assume this is why atsushi remains alive while his comrades die - he is considered a key to the book, so fyodor might need him in order to get to it). perhaps something he'll write in it will revert things as well, or bring in a totally new storyline, or kill everyone lol but i sincerely doubt that

meursault gang somehow becomes relevant again - idk if they can physically make it in time to change anything (unless... nikolai...? 🥺) but idk maybe from afar. maybe the book is located there for some reason and they'll use it. maybe sigma will unlock some new power by unlocking old memories or smth idk. anything's possible

that's all i have for you now. ig we'll wait and see 😳

other thoughts in general:

others have already said so but ain't no way kunikida died fr. and tanizaki won't either. which means teruko might come back too! which makes me slightly less mad abt how she was treated narratively. slightly.

AKUTAGAWA'S BACK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

bram's not coming back guys. sorry. this time i'm certain

as usual: so no nikolai? *throws phone* *smashes skateboard* one day he will come back guys. i can feel it. he has to. nikolai nation we have not lost yet i believe in him.

[knockyasocksoff2022]

ADA Member -> PM Deal Fic Poll

Please reblog for a larger sample size.

I already wrote about Tanizaki Port Mafia AU (where he decided to join on his own), so besides him, who should I write about? I'm talking about being selected for the transfer, not voluntarily joining. (Excluding Yosano, ofc as well as Kenji, and Kyouka b/c just nO!)

Might include ships, but might not depending on the person.

Here are some ways I think each member could be good in the PM:

FUKUZAWA

no extra training required

knows Mori

is at least somewhat familiar with Yokohama's underground

canonically has bloodlust

and only stopped killing because he knew it was BaD

people would be AFRAID

Kunikida and/or Ranpo could take over the ADA

it’s really interesting b/c if he goes Ranpo might follow

and then where would the ADA be?

The fic would prob be tortured Fukumori

slowburn (idk how good I am at writing slow burn but we'll see . . .)

The rekindling of old failed toxic love that was killed before it could really get anywhere or see if it could bloom into something pure

now they have to figure it out in their new circumstances

and if it even can work

but first, they'll have to admit that there's still even the faintest hint of something there

and even then Mori will have to WORK for Fukuzawa's love (don't worry)

KUNIKIDA

organised and efficient so he could easily manage trading operations domestically and overseas

smart even if we may not see a lot b/c of dazai and Ranpo

could probably pick up languages easily

I think he'd be great at undercover work since he's actually capable of being subtle

and he is used to being around *normal* people more and has better social skills

I also feel like he's the type who he can look totally different with a different hair style (or colour) or even if he just takes off his glasses or doesn't wear his little vest or something

and his ideals don't align exactly with the law, only what he thinks is right

he’s willing to do what is necessary to get the job done

if joining the pm and controlling Yokohama’s underworld means less crime and violence overall then he’ll do it

I still think he wouldn’t kill but

he'd prob be really good at interrogation and combat missions that didn't involve killing (like theft or kidnapping for information/money or something)

I don't think he'd be the perfect fit but if they warped or broke him enough he could be absolutely terrifying in the mafia

No ships

Kuni has way higher standards (58 criteria to be precise) and these FREAKS meet none of them

A fic with him would probably be hella angst.

I'm not sure I have a very good grasp of his character yet, so out of all the options, I'm least enthusiastic about writing for him.

Also, I'm already doing a Hunting Dogs AU for him.

ATSUSHI

obviously, his ability

it's the full deal: strength, speed, agility, regeneration

the perfect partner for sskk

the thing last Mori needs for his SKK 2.0

his combat skills are a little haphazard (relying on brute force mostly) 

but Kunikida has been tearing him in martial arts a little 

even though they have hardly any time with all the CHAOS

you're prob thinking "NO WAY! He literally says he needs to save people to live! That's like his whole thing!"

you're right

but if Mori or the other executives warped him, I think b/c he's so insecure, they could convince him

(kind of like they did Kyouka, only her will is stronger than Atsushi's)

that violence and destruction and killing are his purpose and what he was born for.

But, I doubt Mori would go the route of telling him it's all he's good for and that if he doesn't do it, he's good for nothing again.

He knows it didn't work the first time and it's too easy to reverse, especially since Atsushi has already been with the ADA.

I think Mori would set about convincing him that he deserves to let his anger out for all the world has done to him

that the world is his enemy and that he should punish it

that people deserve his wrath for allowing a society where he could be treated the way he has been to exist

Prob slow burn eventual SSKK

on this blog, we say Aku is just fine, perfectly okay, and doing well

They're still going to fight like angry cats

Aku will prob realise his feelings when he finds himself missing Atsushi's old personality

idk

meanwhile, Atsushi is just drowning in the brainwashing

the "bliss" of anger and he's too unaware even to fight it

still, SSKK become partners

and knowing them, it's to the point where only they don't know they are together

them "not-dating" will prob be like their messed up therapy and break Atsushi's trance or smth

maybe they hide the fact that he's not mind-controlled or whatever form Mori

Atsushi might still decide to stay just to keep any other agency members from being transferred

and who knows he may even learn to like it

idk

I haven't thought too far ahead yet

it's too late and I should be in bed but

ANYWAYS here you go!

NAOMI

I know I said I wouldn't do Junichirou

but if you're getting one, you're getting both

They’re a package deal

(Mori might take her just to get Junichirou because he knows they won't leave each other and then he'll end up using Naomi's skills as well)

and what's not to love

besides Jun's crazy killer skills

Noami is smart, savage and a little cruel (how she treats Jun when he's seasick) and unhinged

(thinking of the time she suggested Atsushi do sexual stuff for his entrance exam)

not to mention Dazai tutors her

If you can't have Dazai, why not have his student?

(I swear that's canon, correct me if I'm wrong though)

she has the potential to be heartless, sadistic, and terrifying

She also likes to see people (Junichirou, at least) squirm and be uncomfortable or suffer to some extent.

idk

maybe that’s just their dYnAmIc though

(thinking again of how she treats him when he says no to her and is clearly uncomfortable. Also when she talks loudly and obviously about sexual stuff in front of others.

I’m not sure if it’s intentional or if she really is that insensitive or unaware of how it makes others feel

I suspect the former

this would be a DARK fic

she'd have her villain/corruption arc (YASS, slay Queen)

maybe if I focus on her story more it won't seem TOO repetitive from my Tachizaki mafia fic.

Idk

what the people want, the people get

but we just know sooo painful little about her (aside from her in relation to Jun since their *thing* is kind of her whole personality *cringe*)

unlike some I still like her

If I did there would be no ships

idk even know who to ship her with from the mafia

or maybe I’d be BOLD and go for the ewwie incest

idk

if not then prob very background Tachizaki

Again, please reblog for a larger sample size.

[hesperidia]

tbh i really want Atsushi to be the one that gets transferred into the PM. Not only bc he would be an important asset for Mori and not only for the sskk potential content. But because the latest arc wasn't very focused on him, and i also want the PM cast to have the spotlight for a second.

(Them interacting with Atsushi seems the best way to do that + it'd be interesting to see Atsushi's pov in an organization that does not care about principles and justice, with dynamics so different to the ada).

I'd like to see Atsushi befriending Chuuya, HIM BEFRIENDING HIGUCHI (this would be the funniest thing ever but if it actually happens it would be done very badly because it might turn out as a "jealousy" competition over Akutagawa) But think about it: Higuchi has a little sister she cares for and that's the reason she's in the mafia, Atsushi has Kyouka. They could be the poor underlings that have to be under Aku's command at first and have to put up with his nonsense. There's so much potential for bonding between them i could go on.

It would also be an opportunity to see more of KOUYOU (+ Kouyou thanking Atsushi for taking care of Kyouka pretty please??)

Plus, Mori canonically has some kind of an interest in Atsushi. If we remember chapter 15-16 he gives him advice when they get out of Anne's room (when he didn't have to at all).

Bonus situation i'd like to see: Someone pointed out that both Mori and Atsushi both like chazuke, so imagine Mori recruiting him and treating him to some chazuke like a mirror image of when he was recruited into the ADA by Dazai. But this time in a way that's off. that's uncomfortable and feels so wrong to him.

[a-stray-wretched-dog]

hey guys, i know nobody asked for this ... but this is the official intro for my blog!!!

enjoy~~ (´｡• ᵕ •｡`)

🅘🅝🅣🅡🅞

hey hey, i'm @a-stray-wretched-dog! i usually prefer to stay anonymous about a lot of things, but of course i'd like to share with you some facts about me ...

i mainly like to post about shin soukoku, but i do like ships other than shin soukoku. it's just that the shin soukoku brainrot is too much for me (╥﹏╥)

first, these are some specific tags (to my blog) that may need a little bit of explaining...

⚝ #wretched japanese (random things i found out about japanese, the language.)

⚝ #wretched dreams (about my dreams, usually bsd related.)

⚝ #wretched wishes (drawing requests, expressing my wants.)

now, for the lists of likes and dislikes !!

—------------------♡(´｡• ◡ •｡`)♡------------------—

☆ ★ likes ★ ☆

⚝ bsd characters: atsushi, kunikida, tachihara, tecchou.

⚝ ships: shin soukoku, soukoku, kunizai, suegiku, fukufuku, etc.

⚝ hobbies: cleaning, listening to music (instrumentals), taking showers, going on a walk.

⚝ foods and drinks: curry udon and peach sparkling water.

⚝ people: someone who listens to me, someone who treat others kindly (that's all i ask).

☆ ★ dislikes ★ ☆

⚝ forgetfulness.

⚝ guilt, contrition, regret.

⚝ disorder, messiness (i can't stand it.)

⚝ dread, hopelessness, powerlessness.

⚝ wasted potential (especially for sskk fanfiction.)

anyways, that's all i want to say ... i hope this made you more interested in me as a person.

my asks are always open (submissions are also open)!! feel free to say whatever there (as long as it's not too personal or intimate) !!

and last but not least,

virtual hugs for everyone !!! (づ๑•ᴗ•๑)づ♡

and thank you for reading this.

—--------byakko ≽^•⩊•^≼ rashomonƪ(`▿▿▿▿´ƪ )--------—

[bsdtakanenohana]

This is a ramble post where I am writing down things we know and theories in order to analyze characters

So we all know Dazai is still treating Akutagawa badly despite having left the PM and “changed”. But why does he do this? By doing this, he’s breaking the promise he made to Odasaku, something he really doesn’t want to do. What does he gain from it?

Many have pointed out that Dazai still manipulates Akutagawa in order to form SSKK. But the thing is, he doesn’t need to do that to create the duo. Dazai is smart enough to form SSKK in a way that does not cause abuse to either party involved. So why?

Because the other thing is, he’s not only treating Akutagawa poorly still, but he does that at the risk of hurting Atsushi when he eggs Akutagawa on when he’s been captured by the PM. It doesn’t take a genius to realize that telling Akutagawa that Atsushi is better than him is going to make him attack the other. He still does it.

Does he think that every generation of Double Black needs to have a rivalry? Because that would’ve happened anyways, since they’re a part of enemy organizations and their beliefs clash. And he knows that. So once again, why?

A lot of people say it’s just to hurt him which, if that’s true, would mean that Dazai wants to hurt Akutagawa so badly that he would risk harming Atsushi for it. And the way Dazai is with Atsushi, I don’t think that that would be the case. Even if Dazai hated Akutagawa with every fiber of his being, that wouldn’t be a good enough reason to risk the partnership the saving of the world hinges on. And as it is, I don’t think he hates him with every fiber of his being.

I do think Dazai severely does not like Akutagawa 1) because he reminds him of himself and he hurts Akutagawa the same way he hurts himself with his suicide attempts (and other sh). 2) Reminds him of his past in the PM.

That also brings in more questions. Why does Akutagawa remind Dazai of himself? We meet both boys at age 14, although we know less about 14!Dazai than we do about 14!Aku. But from what we can gather from when he’s fifteen, the two boys have different beginnings. However, while we have some idea of Akutagawa’s background prior to the PM, we don’t have that for Dazai. So there could be something in his past that makes him similar, but that’s just a hypothesis. And if it ends up being wrong, then it might be wrong to say he dislikes Aku because he reminds him of himself. But I just can’t let go of that feeling that I know that that’s part of the reason why he dislikes him. Because there is no other reason really when you think of it. So I’m going with that theory.

Even when we assume that these are the reasons why he really does not like him, it still doesn’t make sense why he would antagonize him particularly against Atsushi. OK so you really hate the guy. Why would you insult him in a way that would hurt someone you like? Insult him in some other way! Because this makes absolutely no sense, I’m inclined to believe that this is an easy way out of a complex problem for Asagiri. Yes Dazai is smart enough to come up with ways to manipulate Aku that don’t hurt him and that wouldn’t have Atsushi in the crossfire. As a writer myself, I know that we are not always as smart as our smartest character. But it would still be lazy writing in a way that wasn’t present at all in the manga. So I can’t fully believe that theory either.

That brings us back to the point that Dazai didn’t even have to insult or manipulate him to begin with. That’s a writing choice you would make if you purposefully want your character to have not finished his redemption arc. But based on the rest of the series plus what was said in an interview, I don’t believe Asagiri is trying to write Dazai as if he’s still in the process of his arc. Which is crazy because it’s pretty obvious it’s still in process! So then why have it be like that at all, why not have him be nice to Akutagawa if you want him to be passed all that?

I have a theory why, but it doesn’t fully explain everything. it doesn’t completely absolve Dazai of what he’s still doing, it would mean he’s in the process of becoming better. It would just make him not as far back as it currently seems like he is. So I still don’t know why the writing choice was made, I still don’t know what that means for his character. Anyways, the theory is of course Dazai knows he treated Akutagawa horribly. That’s canon, he knows it while he’s still in the PM. He definitely knows it now. And, we have seen that he’s capable of regret. He also did acknowledge, with some praise, Akutagawa after the battle of the Moby Dick. I don’t think he is going to apologize and give him proper praise/acknowledgment because he doesn’t want to be forgiven because he doesn’t believe he deserves to be forgiven. Think of what he tells Atsushi when the headmaster dies. “What he did shouldn’t be forgiven” (paraphrasing). The manga also parallels the headmaster with Dazai (“my teacher is still alive but yours isn’t” [paraphrasing] >said by Aku who knows what Atsushi went through). So, at least when it comes to past treatment, we do get canonical acknowledgement that what Dazai did in the PM was wrong and he fully knows it and when he sees someone in a situation like the one he put his past mentee in, he tells him that person (who is like himself and he knows that) should NOT be forgiven. So the theory is, he’s not trying to make amends (like the headmaster attempted to) with Akutagawa because he doesn’t want to put him in the position where he has to make the decision to forgive his abuser. Of course apologizing and being kind to someone you once abused doesn’t mean they’ll forgive you (see Atsushi), but it just means he doesn’t want to put him in that mindset where he has to think of it.

Of course that still doesn’t explain why he treats Akutagawa badly now, it only explains why he’s not actively trying to make it better. Like, continuing to rub salt in the wound of someone you abused is in fact worse than putting them in the awkward and painful position of deciding if they forgive you or not and possibly going through the process of forgiving. Obviously worse. So it still doesn’t explain everything. But it’s something.

There’s also the fact that Dazai isn’t ALWAYS calculating and logical and pragmatic he actually does make decisions based on emotions. So in-universe some of the explanation would be that he’s not using logic. However, even that isn’t satisfactory because Dazai’s lapses in logic never seem to be quite like the way this situation is playing out.

Asagiri has described Dazai as being a donut because “you don’t know what’s in the middle” and he and Harukawa have said he’s the most mysterious character with most of his true motives/thoughts (I forgot the exact words) being hidden. So I have to chalk up the missing pieces of the puzzle to the missing pieces of Dazai. But I need to exhaust everything that we know about him before I just give up and admit defeat and have to wait until more things come out.

Onto the next point. He’s breaking his promise to Odasaku by acting this way. He definitely should realize that, so why doesn’t he? Because to his logic and his mind he’s not. Part 1 of the promise, he is fighting on the side of good ✔️ Part 2 of the promise, he is helping an orphan child (Atsushi)✔️ also helping that orphan child help another orphan child (Kyouka) so ✔️✔️ on that same point. But doesnt Akutagawa count as an orphan child that needs to be helped? We think so. But he is 20 now, a legal adult, so to Dazai he doesn’t count as an orphan in need of help. But he’s supposed to be fighting on the side of good which would mean not further damaging the person you abused so that does hurt the first ✔️, but to him, if as long as he’s doing things for the greater good…

A lot of people wonder why Dazai’s trying to form a new generation of Double Black. It doesn’t make sense it’s not even time for the next generation, they are the same age group! I saw a post on here and then I saw what some other people were saying on Instagram kind of relating to the issue and they were saying it as a joke but it’s pretty true: Dazai wants out of SKK and is willing to form a weaker version, as long as it means getting out. That makes him look bad, but to be fair the manga isn’t over yet. The way it all ends may prove that despite their obvious inferiority to SKK, SSKK’s specific abilities, or that combo thing they do with their abilities,are specifically what is needed to take down the ultimate bad at the end of the series. Still weird way of doing it— not even talking about the part where he wants them to hate each other— but whatevs.

I don’t know what the conclusion is since this is a ramble, but if anyone here has read through all of this (first of all I’m giving you kisses on the cheek 😘😘) and wants to help me piece together stuff based on the points I’ve made please do so because I am very confused and I’ve been confused for the past 3 1/2 years of my life. There will probably be a part two but today I’ve exhausted my mind. 

[lnkedmyheart]

Am I the only one who sees any fic where Chuuya goes after Dazai when he leaves the Mafia to leave too and goes “huh?” I’m not talking about fics where Chuuya leaves with Dazai, I mean fics where he tracks him down and is like, “I’m leaving too, I’m coming with you.” I just think if there was anything that caused Chuuya to leave the Mafia, I can not see him going after Dazai. I feel like he would just be like, “I am not chasing after that asshole.” Like I know some people are very into the whole ‘loyal dog who follows Dazai’ imagery or dynamic or whatever but I do not vibe with it

Personally I dont care for that trope. But I can see why people like it. Fanfics are for exploring things you would like to see but not as a canon event. Like I wanna see Chuuya snap and go full time villain that the Agency needs to take down in a fic but I dont wanna see it happen in canon cause it would be out of character unless something actually happens to justify it. However, i feel like the fandom tends to treat fanon as gospel, like no, Chuuya would not follow Dazai. His whole thing is that he refuses to be anything but an equal participant when it comes to Dazai. If Dazai had asked him to come along? Sure he might have considered it to some extent cause uts his loyalty to his partner vs his loyalty to the mafia people. But to actually leave he'd need some really substantial motivation. Its like with beast, what all would have had to happen to get Chuuya to despise Dazai so much and still snap when he dies, what needed to happen to get Oda to hate Dazai, what needed to happen to get sskk to swap places? In the world Asagiri mentioned where Dazai and Chuuya left together, something major would need to change.

I also stopped reading fanfics a while ago now so idk if there has been an influx of this trope. Generally speaking the quality of fanfics has been declining what with wattpad users moving their works to ao3 and in general the fandom growing larger. Ofcourse there are some great fics that come up once in a while but most of them are just a rinse and repeat of the same trope because news fans have not read half the content in the ln's. Can you really blame them for mischaracterizing when they only know what the loud side of the skk fandom insists is canon and not having read any of their actual dynamic?

[pmreaper]

enjoy a quick little sskk drabble for sheep au thats probably not winding up on ao3 <3 it's in character for the changes the au makes but too ooc for the source material which makes me feel weird about posting it to ao3/in the main tag. hope yall enjoy anyways!

“Hey, Ryuunosuke.”

One eye peered open from where Ryuunosuke had been resting his eyes. He was deep in Sheep territory, about as safe as he could get. Chuuya was out somewhere prowling the streets for any threats, so Ryuunosuke had an off shift. Since Gin was otherwise occupied, he had decided to take a moment to “relax.”

It was nice.

Having his rest interrupted wasn’t exactly a poor thing, either. The voice that called out to him belonged to the strangest member of the Sheep, Nakajima Atsushi. The weretiger. (Not that the boy knew that last part, Ryuunosuke thought dryly to himself.)

The fact that Atsushi didn’t know was a constant thorn in Ryuunosuke’s side, but not one that he could exactly do anything about. Chuuya had been clear in making sure that nobody told Atsushi about his ability.

Regardless of Ryuunosuke’s annoyance over that particular situation, Atsushi was still strange enough on his own. He was a member of the Flock, but didn’t have many qualms anymore about talking with members of the Sheep. He barely had any about socializing with Chuuya or Ryuunosuke himself, and what ones he did have disappeared when Dazai showed up and took an interest in the cub. The boy had no sense of self preservation, either. He thought he was defenseless and still surrounded himself with people much stronger than him.

And, Atsushi always treated Ryuunosuke like they were at the same level. It was different when Chuuya did that to Ryuunosuke, when Chuuya was arguably more powerful than Ryuunosuke was. Atsushi’s stupid ability to turn into some fluffy creature every full moon wasn’t as strong as Rashomon, though, and Atsushi didn’t even know he had an ability at all.

At first, Ryuunosuke found it disrespectful. If Atsushi was talking to him as an equal while being weaker than Ryuunosuke, that meant he thought Ryuunosuke was weaker than he really was.

After a while, Ryuunosuke managed to figure out that Atsushi still had respect for Ryuunosuke’s power. He spoke of Rashomon openly- not treating it as taboo to bring up directly like so many Sheep- but also with awed breath. It was something that he recognized, but which simply did not pose an obstacle to his desires. It was strange.

Ryuunosuke first brushed aside Atsushi, but after repeated attempts from the younger boy, Ryuunosuke came to respect Atsushi in turn for his determination, however misplaced it may have been. So, he’d begun responding to Atsushi’s attempts at contact.

“Atsushi,” Ryuunosuke said in acknowledgement. He was sat on the roof of some hut, his back resting to the stone wall it was built against. Meanwhile, Atsushi was on the street level, gazing up at Ryuunosuke. “Is something wrong?”

From down on the ground, Atsushi shook his head ‘no.’ “I was looking for you.” His eyes narrowed a little, in confusion instead of anger. “How am I supposed to get up there?”

To anyone else, Ryuunosuke probably would’ve huffed and said, ‘you’re not.’ But as it was Atsushi, he merely rolled his eyes and activated Rashomon. It wasn’t perfect, but a thin ladder now descended the wall, and Atsushi scurried up. “What is it?” he asked once Atsushi scampered on over, retracting Rashomon back into his outfit.

“I have something for you!” Atsushi wasn’t even out of breath after scrambling so quickly up the ladder, something that Ryuunosuke noted with a stab of envy before realizing what Atsushi had said. A gift for him? Ryuunosuke watched as he took something out of a pocket inside of his jacket, a small brown bag that jangled with every movement. “Well, a few things for you.”

Ryuunosuke blinked. "You have… small bits of metal for me?"

"Yup!" Atsushi turned the bag upside down and let the pieces of metal scatter over the roof of the hut. Ryuunosuke looked at them blankly. They were his now? "I've been gathering them for the past month."

Picking one up, Ryuunosuke examined the metal scrap. It had writing on it that he recognized from a soda can. About the size of a coffee lid, it had sharp edges and a hole torn out of its center. He didn't understand how he was supposed to carry all of them around without cutting up his hands, a distressing thought. Cautiously, he asked Atsushi, "are you giving me the bag too?"

"You don't need the bag," Atsushi said, waving a hand around. "Just put them in Rashomon."

"What."

"What? It's a good idea!" Atsushi looked genuinely offended, which put Ryuunosuke on edge. What had he done? "If you attach bits of metal to Rashomon, then if anyone attacks you, you have extra protection."

Frowning, Ryuunosuke explained, "Rashomon can be sharper or more serated than any piece of scrap metal."

"Have you ever heard of shrapnel?"

"...Ah." Ryuunosuke took a second to consider the possibility of leaving bits of metal in the body of an attacker. He wasn't opposed to it. He took the piece of soda can he was holding and let Rashomon wrap itself around the hole in the center near his shoulder. It looked almost like a piece of a pauldron. "Like this?"

Nodding excitedly, Atsushi said, "yes, exactly!"

Ryuunosuke took a few minutes to strategically place the bits of metal, all of varying sizes, where they wouldn't rub against fabric when Ryuunosuke was moving. But after a while, he was struggling to reach onto his back.

"I've got it," Atsushi suddenly piped up, picking up one of the scraps with deft hands. "Just do what you do with Rashomon and I'll put it on."

Reminded not-so-vaguely of the way Atsushi could turn into a giant tiger on full moons, Ryuunosuke hesitated. He would have hesitated to give his back to anyone else, even Chuuya. But there was something earnest and kind about the offer that made Ryuunosuke give in. Haltingly, Ryuunosuke turned away from Atsushi, biting his lip as he did so.

Despite himself he half expected an attack.

But none came.

Instead, Atsushi simply fell into a rhythm with Rashomon, placing the metal scraps onto protrusions which would then retract into the fabric, leaving the shrapnel embedded in the outer layer.

When Atsushi was finally done, Ryuunosuke turned around, jangling slightly. He saw Atsushi trying and failing to stifle a laugh. Ryuunosuke rolled his eyes.

Sure, he wasn't going to be able to use any stealth, but anyone who saw him coming should turn the other way anyways. Probably a few members of the Sheep and the Flock would do that, too.

But not Atsushi. Definitely not him.

[kyouka-supremacy]

Kyotag, I feel like you understand Akutagawa so well. I saw your post about Chuuya and how he would give Akutagawa a purpose and it just feels like you understand Akutagawa's need for some purpose, but not in the regular sense? The sense of having a purpose to absolutely surpass. Because, having 'potential' is horrendous for him, I feel, rather than being the worst. Because it means that there's something he's not touching. If you're the worst, then technically you're still the best at being the absolute rock bottom of something.

On Dazai and Aku's relationship, I feel like Dazai tried to compensate/change it after joining the ADA, however I feel like now he's taking his hands away? If that makes sense,

As in, he's letting Atsushi and Akutagawa refine each other. The same way Mori felt diamonds polish diamonds, a mirror needs a window. Dazai, if I understand him well, says that he removes himself as a resource of growth for others. I think it was when Fyodor was asking why his teammates are so reliant on him? He believes Akutagawa can find an answer for himself, in my opinion. Nothing he did was to Akutagawa's benefit in the PM other than taking him in, which, in itself, is very questionable. Akutagawa has simply managed to bend all his experiences to be a blade sharpener, to refine himself upon because he is desperate to become the sharpest edge.

Dazai, if anything, has merely observed the strange instinct to persevere that Akutagawa has, and I feel that his dominant nature is why he thought Atsushi completes him due to his recessive nature. I also feel like that's why, Shin Soukoku as a label?? (?) (?) Displays how Dazai doesn't know him as well as Atsushi does, or will at the time of partnership. They aren't like Soukoku, they are Double Grey if anything. One knows how to persevere the other knows how to surrender, extensions of the will to live and the will to die. Both place necessity on them, it's not a luxury, it's a need. Dazai can sense something of this sort, I feel, but can't fully comprehend Akutagawa — unlike Atsushi.

So essentially, I think Dazai knows he tried moulding Akutagawa's dominant nature to what he deems 'perfect' or, 'likeable'. However Akutagawa has a really strong personality, from growing up on the streets and lacking a childhood. I think Dazai's changed and has grown to notice this. That he shouldn't try to silence his nature, but give the growing vine a bamboo pole.

Thank you, I'm so happy to hear you enjoy my interpretation of the characters (╥﹏╥) Your words made my week, thank you.

I do wholly agree, being told he has potential would feel awful for Akutagawa, because for him that's just telling him there's a standard he can't live up to. Having potential is a pressure-heavy statement; for him, it's a reminder that he's not there yet and, given how lowly he thinks of himself, an affirmation that he'll never get there, either. And I can confirm Akutagawa absolutely does take pride in being the worst at things lol. As in, the worst pm individual to ever stumble across, the worst opponent of them all– he'd take these as compliments. That's something that lacks the pressure of possible failure, that's something he's already “the best” at.

As for Akutagawa and Dazai's relationship after Dazai joined the ada, yeah,,, It's really very complex and multifaceted, I really like exploring it. I've talked about this a lot recently too, but again I really stand by the fact that Dazai wants to have very little to do with Akutagawa, yet at the same time also marginally cares about him, deep deep down? (Or, although I can't find it in myself to call it anything close to guilt for how he treated Akutagawa, experiences at least a tiny inclination to make up for it). So when he finds Atsushi, Dazai is nothing but delighted to dump the task of fixing Akutagawa to him (which is funny, because Atsushi has no intention of fixing Akutagawa; but be it because of Dazai's manipulation, be it because of sskk soulmatism, he will end up doing so anyway). I really like your interpretation of Dazai removing himself from direct influence to make people grow on their own, I find it very fitting. It's also coherent with his alleged trust in his allies that's been coming up in the last chapters, as well as some kind of avoidance behavior that if you ask me is in him. And okay, I LOVE the interpretation that Dazai believes Akutagawa can find “the answer” by himself. God!!!!!!!! This concept is so good. Dazai never gave Akutagawa the answer because he knows he can't, because that's not something for him to give!!! But what he can do is put Akutagawa in the conditions to find it by himself!!!!!! Whoa stuff that's instantly integrated into my belief system for real. The way that would also be like, the only time in his life Dazai would actually be acting like a teacher / mentor to Akutagawa.

They aren't like Soukoku, they are Double Grey if anything 😭😭😭 That's what we've been telling Dazai since forever. I do like to think Dazai can't get sskk all the way to the core, if anything because I relish the thought that there's something so special and personal in their relationship, even Dazai can't control it. Agreed, not even Dazai can understand Akutagawa like Atsushi does. I feel like despite Dazai's endless perceptiveness, he will never be able to understand on an emotional level what it means to strive for a reason to live, because Akutagawa just wants to live /so much/, while Dazai doesn't. While on the other hand, Atsushi gets it. He gets what it means to feel like the right to live is something you have to gain; he gets the striving to live, because he feels it all the same.

(Not to give rise to misunderstandings: Dazai does look for a reason to live. It's just that in his case, it's looking for a reason to live so that he can stop wanting to die, while for Akutagawa it's because he desperately wants to keep living. They're such fundamentally different sentiments, I believe deep down Akutagawa and Dazai are ultimately incomprehensible to each other. That's why, when in the Heartless Cur Dazai told Akutagawa he would have been able to give him a reason to live, in my opinion he was lying. Because he doesn't have that, he doesn't have that even for himself.)

Back to Akutagawa and Dazai's relationship. Honestly, I think when moulding Akutagawa in the pm, Dazai was shooting for some kind of perfection; it's just that at the time, such perfection was making of him the perfect killing machine. And when he suddenly left the pm, he was already pretty much done. But then, Dazai's objective for Akutagawa fundamentally changed; and now he doesn't want Akutagawa to be a mindless violent executor anymore, but his own manipulation is backfiring at him, because that's what he made Akutagawa to be. Akutagawa really is the failed child in a lot of ways, an experiment gone wrong, an abandoned art piece. By the way, I really like the emphasis you put on Akutagawa having a really strong personality, because I truly believe he does. It's especially evident in Beast. We just forget about it because Dazai also happens to be the single person in the world able to change that personality to his liking, to put a muzzle on him; but I'm fully convinced no one else can (that's also why I'm reticent to believe Akutagawa would be much tame when interacting with Chuuya or Mori). It's nice to think Dazai would eventually learn to let Akutagawa's nature thrive. Because there's not exclusively beastly tendencies in it. Then if Dazai keeps being a god in Akutagawa's life (in Beast, almost in a literal sense), at least it's a god that allows him free will.