#we will only have one half of soukoku by the end of series

[cocktailjjrs]

I'm scared for Chuuya...

Here's my morbid thought of the day....

I'm scared Chuuya isn't going to make it till the end of the series.

Before you jump at me, hear me out

He's the strongest Ability user in Yokohama, right?

But till now we've only seen him actually fight a few unnatural guys

Rimbaud - a French spy

Verlaine & Guivre - Artificial human and his singularity

His own clone (made of bones)

Shibusawa (during Dragon head)

Dazai

Lovecraft - someone who could turn into a monster without it being an ability

A freaking Ability Dragon (dead apple)

Like, do you see... All these people, none of them being something a normal ability user could win with...

Logically speaking, if there was ever a threat to Yokohama, he is supposed to be at the forefront of all the fights that come and deal with them without any problem.

But the problem arises with a small fact, he is not the MC!

He's been kept out of all the major fights without reason, we all make fun of it too.

But here on, things are going to get messy. Since the last couple of chapter we saw we need all hands on deck, every single one... So, he is going to be involved in fights... But if he will survive them or not is a complete different question...

Narrative wise, once Shin soukoku get's established, we won't exactly be needing Soukoku... even for biggest of threats

Dazai is instrumental to the plot too, we need someone to pull the strings... even if Dazai want's to die, death doesn't seem interested in him

Everyone ADA also has unique abilities, they will be fine.... (finger-crossed to bring back kunikida, kenji, tanizaki...)

Other's might just survive for the virtue of not being a prominent figure...

But out everyone, Chuuya is in the perfect spot -

A Strong ability user leads an attack in the final battle Bringing down enemy forces either by facing them head on or destroying them from inside out Get killed in process Let other's do the rest of the job

Plus put in the angle of succeeders stepping up to surpass their predecessors... put in revenge in mix too...

Because let's face it, even if Asagiri doesn't kill unless it's kids, he can make exception in the final battle where once dead you stay dead!

And with the current trend...

Yeah, I'm actually scared...

[charmspoint]

THANK YOU FOR SAYING THAT ABT THE BSD MANGA ILY THANK YOU I FEEL LIKE MY OPINION IS FINALLY VALIDATED WHICH IS: BSD has turned meh. I have become indifferent towards the plot due to the fact there are no real stakes - I feel like the OP characters like Dazai will always have a solution with a deus ex machina feel to it, making it impossible for me to care. With the recent chaos happening in the manga (I too gave up on the manga a year or so ago!), I was baffled to find out I could no longer enjoy it. My memory is poor, and I can't really pinpoint it at the moment, but BSD just... doesn't engage me as it used to. Keep in mind I was an obsessive fan of it and analyzed it to the tiniest details, but all of my great love for the series has long died, sadly. But! I am glad to hear you feel similarly about it because, yes, the potential was there, but it got terribly wasted.

Bruh don't I feel it, me and @autumn-foxfire have like monthly bitch sessions about the state of bsd at this point. I was also super invested in it in initial arcs (Up until the guild arc ended) and then slowly started petering off only to drop it the first time around the hunting dogs introduction. Then after some time i was like okay ill go give it a second shot, came to the vampire arc went 'wow this is really fuckin stupid' and dropped it again. Idk will I pick it up again, maybe I'll just stick to being an anime only, even tho I also have problems with some adaptation things but that's BESIDES THE POINT.

Please click under for The Point

The thing about Kafka is: He's really good at coming up with interesting concepts and ideas and REALLY BAD at executing them in any sort of satisfying way. Like, when I say I only like bsd until the end of the guild arc, I don't mean it was perfect. It could have handled it's female cast better, it would have been fun to see more mafia and agency team ups besides soukoku and shin soukoku, I still don't get why shin soukoku is supposed to be a replacement in training since Dazai and Chuuya still work together perfectly and even if they hate each other they hate each other less than Akutagawa and Atsushi AND have way more experience fighting together but that once again is besides the point. The point being those arcs of bsd were SATISFYING. We got introduced to two organizations, seen them butt heads and then have them forced to work together against a common enemy. It's very simple but it's effective and it's satisfying.

And then the rats struck.

While up until then bsd wasn't perfect it was fun and had lovable characters and an interesting plot and engaging dynamics. Rats arc wasn't horrible per say, the idea of the cannibalization was really fun (Though I think Kafka should have used it to get rid of Mori, nobody fuckin likes Mori) but this is where we slowly get introduced to what I think are two main failings of Kafka's writing: That he's unable to handle characters properly and that he likes writing smart things but doesn't know how to write smart things.

Kafka has a very, very bad habit of INTRODUCING TOO MANY FUCKING CHARCTERS. Every arc is a new massive group with like a bunch of members, one of who may actually end up being fleshed out before they are inventiblely replaced by another large group or maybe two why the fuck not. The mafia and the guild left lasting impressions on me and I can still name all the main members but fuck me if i know a single rat aside from Fyodor (AND ILL GET TO FYODOR). Kafka feels like someone who's idea of rising conflict is 'introduce a bigger enemy each time' and it's just so annoying. Chapters and arcs end up centering around these groups of new characters while old characters, who we loved the manga for, just fall into obscurity. He almost had me in the hunting dogs arc by giving Yosano a backstory. I was so excited! I was like!!! finally development for the agency!!! But that barely went anywhere did it. I've talked about this with Foxy but it really feels like Kafka is just BORED of the og characters and is trying to silently sideline them for his new shiny characters. When's the last time we saw Chuuya again, you know, the ex partner of one of the series protagonists? The next predicted mafia head? Is he important? Foxy tells me Dazai's been sidelined too, fUCKIN DAZAI, for a good while I was sure Kafka liked Dazai a lot better than Atsuhi for protagonist and now he's getting sidelined. I know bsd is still really popular in japan but at this point i think it would have been more merciful for Kafka to just end bsd and start a new manga with new characters instead of doing whatever weird metamorphosis this is turning out to be.

Introducing new characters isn't a bad thing of course, but bsd has become mcdonalds of new characters. They are cheap and disposable. I can't feel anything for them because I know nine times out of ten they'll barely make any impact and they'll disappear as soon as the new group slides in. When adding new characters you should do so while knowing what role those characters will play in your plot, what will they bring. If a character is just there to waffle around until they get shoved away they should probably be cut because they are wasting time and space. AND YOU SHOULDN'T SIDE LINE YOUR CORE CAST FOR UR SHINY NEW CHARACTERS YOU'LL GET BORED OF IN COUPLE OF ARCS ANYWAY, ARE YOU A TODDLER???

I still think that bsd could have been SO much better if instead of focusing on the next big evil group they just focused on shifting tension between the agency and the mafia. I mean they've had to team up for the guild and then they immediately got thrown into the cannibalization. It would have been interesting to see them pull against and pull towards those ties made during the guild arc when they are forcefully pitted against each other again (and decide that killing mori would be in everyone's best interest). Instead we got, idk I already forgot what the rats arc ended up being about, atsushi and aku team up again yadda yadda yadda, Chuuya gets done dirty and never recovers, Fyodor ruins Dazai

SO ABOUT FYODOR. As I said, Kafka strikes me as someone who REALLY likes to write geniuses and who wants people to think he's super smart but also has no idea how to show his work. At first this was okay. We had Dazai and Ranpo who were very good at pushing the plot along and sometimes you'd get explained how they got to that conclusion and sometimes you didn't but it usually wasn't a big deal. But then the writing became more and more and more of 'well he's smart so he figured it out so just trust me' without actually explaining anything and as you said, it ended up feeling boring, unengaging and very deus ex machina. You know what Kafka's writing reminds me off? That video about how Sherlock is so happy to stroke itself to how smart they look while never showing their work, you know the one. Kafka likes writing smart characters but doesn't actually know how to write smart characters so instead of giving us reasons and clues and explanations to how they come to some conclusion, how they predicted or planned or whatever, he just goes 'oh well they are super smart so they figured it out'. I don't think I need to explained why this is bad, annoying and unengaging writing. This is why i say Fyodor ruined Dazai for me, Dazai was fine as a genius but then they had to pit him against Fyodor who's another genius and things just got ridiculous. You know how in that sherlock video the guy points out the one scene that encapsulates every irritating thing about sherlocks writing. This had been it for me and BSD (thank you Foxy for helping me find the panels)

THATS NOT HOW CODES WORK, THATS NOT HOW ANYTHING WORKS, THEY WOULD JUST BE COMING UP WITH TWO DIFFERENT SETS OF CODES HERE. Even if they were both smart enough to remember every conversation in detail, how on earth are they supposed to 'guess out' what the other means. How are they supposed to confirm or deny that's what a certain word means in a way that can be understood, how can they even guess what the word the other guessed is IF THEY ARE BOTH TALKING IN CODE. KAFKA'S ANSWER: THEY'RE MONSTERS, THEY ARE JUST THAT SMART, NO NEED TO EXPLAIN IT BECAUSE THEY ARE JUST THAT SMART AND THAT'S YOUR SOLUTION AND THAT'S BULLSHIT. This scene broke bsd in half for me and honestly made me dislike Dazai for a long time (I got better), but it honestly shows so well how Kafka wanted to make his characters so smart he actually made his manga really fuckin stupid, ruining very good and interesting concept he had started with.

In the end, Kafka writes how I wrote when I was 15. With no idea where the plot is headed, adding new characters and situations whenever it strikes his fancy whether they work for the story or not, ending up just flopping around plot holes and fizzled out character arcs and boring ass writing. And that's fine for a 15yr old writing fanfiction. It's not fine for a presumably grown ass published author of a relatively popular manga.

Thank you for coming to my Ted Talk.

[aspoonofsugar]

Do you have any thoughts on BSD ability colors? I.e. How Rashomon and For the Tainted Sorrow are red, No Longer Human and Beast Beneath the Moonlight are blue, Demon Snow is purple, Doppo Poet is green, Little Women is yellow, etc?

Hello anon!

I don’t know how much the colors are meant to symbolyze something specific, but I can link you to this post by @gon-furiikusu and @subdee. The series it talks about is hxh, but the topic is the same since the author is trying to assign a meaning to the color of each character’s aura. The post has also a useful link to sites talking about color symbolism.

Even if I am not sure there is any specific meaning in most cases (if not a generic one linked to each character’s personality), I think that the colors of the abilities might be important for soukoku and shin soukoko and especially for the last two.

I will be quoting what @hamliet said in a conversation we had:

Red and blue make purple, which is assopciated with the sunset, which the anime uses a lot :P But in the openings and EDs it’s a thing. Like in the third season, the OP changes: Akutagawa is shown wiht blue and Atsushi with red (in addiition to their traditional other associations) when they appear together, it’s in front of purple. Red and blue are ofteen seen as opposite primary colors actually!!!! Hence red oni and blue oni!

I think her comment is pretty explicative in itself. In short, Akutagawa and Atsushi are associated to two primary and complementary colors because they are meant to complement each other and to help each other grow. Their union is  meant to create a new color and hence why they meet in front of the purple which symbolizes the synthesis between their two personalities. If you are interested in an analysis about the second ending I can link you to this meta by @linkspooky​.

When it comes to Akutagawa and Atsushi’s specific colors, I think they are meant to highlight their different personalities. I think that it is especially telling the fact that the red oni is often associated with the id aka to the more instinctive parts of the self, while the blue oni is associated with the super-ego aka the most rational parts of the self. The id is an illogical and almost feral part each person has, while the super-ego is made up of the rules society imposes on the individual. Between them there is the ego and the ego must balance these two opposite parts and make so that the person can develop a healthy sense of identity. Basically, both Atsushi and Akutagawa are extreme. I have mentioned it here:

The point is that Akutagawa represents everything Atsushi doesn’t want to accept about himself (the violence, the possibility of being left behind, how pathetic and wrong it is to let one’s worth being decided by others’ praise etc.). At the same time Atsushi is the same for Akutagawa.

Moreover, Atsushi and Akutagawa are also complementary as Dazai explains.

However, their complementarity should not be considered only on a functional level, but also on a symbolic one.

On one hand Atsushi’s ability lets him turn into a beast he is scared of and can’t control. He literally hides the tiger from both others and himself.

On the other hand Akutagawa transforms his coat into a beast and so he projects a violent persona.

Atsushi hides his aggressiveness, whereas Akutagawa wears it proudly and hides his vulnerability.

In short, they are both the same and opposite and this is why they can’t stand each other. This is also why they balance each other like yin and yang.

As far as Chuuya and Dazai are concerned, I find interesting that from this:

It seems to me that Chuuya’s ability is black in the manga rather than red like in the anime. All in all, it makes not much difference because either way both black and red are colours associated with Chuuya somehow.

The black is symbolic of the mafia. As a matter of fact the members of the mafia wear black and it is not by chance that the name of Dazai and Chuuya’s partnership can be translated as double black. As a matter of fact they were both in the mafia by that time and were considered the organization’s strongest asset. Black is also mentioned in Chuuya’s character song:

“I’ll push myself to the limits and dye everything jet-black”

The red is a color strongly associated with Chuuya to the point that no matter how much his design changes in the different novels, it is a color Harukawa always tries to put in. Red is symbolic of Chuuya’s violent and passionate nature since it is a color associated to both blood and feelings, so in a sense it nicely highlights Chuuya’s best and worst traits.

At the same time, when it comes to Dazai’s ability, we have this:

I have personally always seen it as white, but you are right since there is some light blue in it.

Anyway, the fact that it is of a light color and of a mix of white and light blue is interesting when you compare it to Chuuya’s For the Tainted Sorrow which is either black or red.

On one hand the red and blue theming colors have the same meaning highlighted by Akutagawa and Atsushi’s abilities.

On the other hand the fact that we can imagine them being alternatively white and black is interesting because white and black are once more opposite colors. I like to think that Dazai and Chuuya’s abilities being potentially black and white highlights how much opposite they are and how their difficulties in complementing each other comes also by this almost complete opposition. All in all black and white suggest to me a stricter contrast than blue and red. I have mentioned this difference also in this madoka meta if you are interested.

That said, this might very well be just a rumbling of mine, rather than something the narrative openly supports. That said, the importance of black and white is something which is definately in the narrative and not only when it comes to Dazai and Chuuya:

After all black and white are the colors of the tao and are the two major colors used in Atsushi and Akutagawa’s designs. Akutagawa is almost completely black except for his tie and Atsushi is almost completely white, but has some black as well. They are obviously meant to look like the two halves of the tao when they are seen together. This is something highlighted also by the title of Beast aka White Akutagawa and Black Atsushi where their roles and colors are inverted.

In short, red and blue and black and white are colors linked to both soukoku and shin soukoku because both couples are meant to be seen as opposite, but complementary and are also meant to represent the two sides of the conflict between the mafia and the ADA.

Finally, let me discuss briefly the use of colors in this scene of dead apple:

The scene has mostly red and white and the balance of the two colors is pretty beautiful and potentially thematically resonant because the white and the read are the colors of an apple. @linkspooky​ explained in this meta the meaning of the title Dead Apple and how it is built on an oxymore since the apple is representative of life, but at the same time it is associated to the adjective “dead”. The complicated relationship between life and death is one of the major themes of the series. The point is that the scene between Dazai and Chuuya is one among the many scenes of the movie which highlights this connection.

Dazai is Snow-white who has died. This is why he has white clothes and is surrounded by a white aura. What is more, white is also the color of grief in some cultures. In short, Dazai here represents the “dead” of dead apple.

Chuuya is instead surrounded by red. His ability is red and the dragon he has just fought is red. It is not by chance that Chuuya and the dragon share the same color because all in all they are both associated with the id aka with the unconscious and the feral. The dragon is a literal monster and it represents Tastuhiko’s id i.e. the parts of himself he had forgotten and refused to face. It is not by chance that he re-emerges as a complete individual and fights Atsushi once the dragon is defeated. He can do so because he has faced his shadow and accepted it just like Atsushi does when he accepts that he had killed someone. As far as Chuuya is concerned him facing a literal dragon simply adds up to what I have discussed in this meta. Chuuya is a character with a very strong id which is symbolized by his ability which can literally take control over him. When Chuuya is in his state of corruption he forgets himself and lets his desire of destruction free. This is something which scares him and this is why Dazai’s nullification is so important. It acts as some sort of super-ego and helps Chuuya find himself (his ego) again. However, the id is not inherently something negative and it is actually something linked to the most human and primitive instincts like the one to survive. This is why red is also linked to the color of the apple aka it is the color of life.

So, we can simplicistically say that the white is the color of the death and of the super-ego (this is also why it is strongly associated with Atsushi and Tatsuhiko who are two characters linked to the super-ego), while red is the color of life and of the id (and it is associated with Akutagawa among others).

The scene between Chuuya and Dazai shows how these two realities are linked since Chuuya saves Dazai and immediately later Dazai saves Chuuya. Even the medicine which nullifies the effect of the poison is half white and half red. This symbolizes how Dazai is on the brink between these two realities since he prepares an antidote, but instead of taking it when he is poisoned (which would have been simpler and more efficient) he bets his life on the fact that Chuuya will punch him. This can very well represent Dazai’s complicated relationship with his life and how in the end his own connections are what saves him.

Thank you for the ask!

[yellowcanna]

Stray Dogs

Summary:

When Nakahara Chuuya opened his eyes, he had expected everything to be the same as it did for the past five years. The jingling sound of chains rang through the air as he slowly pushes himself from the cold ground. He brushed off some dirt from his cheeks—not that it will make him any cleaner. When he sat up and took a proper look at his surroundings, he realized it was not the same... 

“Great, of all things it’s a fucking leech.” He groaned. 

“As if I want to be roomed with an animal that looked like it hadn’t bathed for a decade,” said leech fired back. 

This was the beginning of their long journey. 

The story of how two stray dogs met.

Pairings: Soukoku (Dazai x Chuuya), Shin Soukoku (Akutagawa x Atsushi)

Rating: T

Author: Canna / Yellow Canna

Series: Part 2 of Those with Claws and Those with Fangs

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◅ PART 1                               Main Page                               PART 3 ▻

•• ━━━━━ ••●•• ━━━━━ ••

The same pitiful cries.

The same foul stench.

The same depressing atmosphere.

When Nakahara Chuuya opened his eyes, he had expected everything to be the same as it did for the past five years.

The jingling sound of chains rang through the air as he slowly pushes himself from the cold ground. He brushed off some dirt from his cheeks—not that it will make him any cleaner. When he sat up and took a proper look at his surroundings, he realized it was not the same.

Ocean blue eyes stared flatly at the other existence sharing his room.

“And here I was wondering when the kitty would wake,” said the raven-haired boy seemingly his age.

The boy had a metal collar on his neck and hands as well. Thick iron chains stretched from the cuffs with the other end nailed deeply into the stone wall. He was covered in grimy bandages with ragged clothes like everyone else in this cursed place.

Chuuya furrowed his brows as he tried to process what his new roommate had said. It's been like this ever since he was shipped to this foreign land. The lack of having someone to converse with also didn't help his language improvement. After all, humans didn't need him to speak their language to become their source of entertainment.

“Great, it’s a fucking leech.” Chuuya groaned. Why of all things did he get locked up with a vampire? Was this some sort of new torture method?

“As if I want to be roomed with an animal that looked like it hadn’t bathed for a decade.”

“What was that?! I’ll beat the shit out of you, brat!” Chuuya shouted out of reflex, only to freeze when he realized that he understood the other just now. The vampire was speaking Japanese.

Chuuya really looked at this vampire for this time. His eyes scanned over the vampire's delicate Asian features that he hadn’t bother noticing before.

“You’re a brat as well!” The vampire countered. Burnt umber eyes looking over Chuuya in a way that made the redhead wanted to slam his fist into that smug face. “Not to mention you’re just a shrimp! Should have drank more milk when you had the chance!”

“Mind your own business!”

The two glared at one another. They could already tell that they were not going to enjoy rooming together.

Their glaring contest was interrupted when the metallic door to their confinement slammed open. An old, shaggy gruff man stomped in. He was someone Chuuya seen regularly during mealtime. As usual, the man threw a chunk of raw meat at the redhead's feet before he turned to leave.

The heavy door slammed shut, leaving the two in silence.

"Is there discrimination against vampires here?" The vampire asked in a bored tone. "Why wasn't I given a meal?"

Chuuya ignored the vampire and grabbed the piece of meat that barely got any blood left despite being raw. The meat was covered in dirt and the flesh was an unhealthy dark brown hue. A sour stench was practically emitting from the thing. The meat was spoiled, that much was obvious even to the vampire who was scrunching his nose in disgust.

Chuuya didn’t even bat an eye as he bit into the old meat and tore it apart with his teeth.

“I’m amazed you can eat that.” The vampire commented after Chuuya had already devoured half of it. “No wonder you’re short.”

The sound of knuckles cracking echoed through the tiny room.

“Do you even know the situation you’re in?!”

“Isn’t it obvious?” The vampire responded blankly. “I got captured while testing out a new suicide method in a well. Now I’m stuck here with a werebeast.”

Said werebeast’s brows twitched. This was just perfect. Not only was he locked up with his race's sworn enemy, the said enemy was suicidal. Just great!

“Go hang yourself and die.” The redhead went back to eating what little food he had left. After that, he began to lick the sour blood off his dirt-covered hand. 

The vampire appeared thoroughly grossed out by his action, but Chuuya couldn't care less of what his roommate felt. He had long thrown away the pride he once had. To survive in this hellhole, he had to lower his head to these humans that captured him. His body has been worn down over the years. Now, he was practically just a skeleton wrapped within a thin layer of skin. 

That was what this place does to them. They were beaten and starved until submission, then used for those veil creatures’ entertainment.

Chuuya could still remember that night eight years ago when his village was raided by humans. Older werebeasts were killed off and the young ones were all captured. Chuuya didn’t know where the other kids got sent off to, but he was the only one they bothered shipping across the ocean due to his unique bloodline.

Apparently, humans found it entertaining to watch monsters like him kill one another.

“So? How did you get captured?” The vampire suddenly asked.

Chuuya glanced at the vampire from the corner of his eyes before turning away to ignore him. Sadly the raven didn’t get the message, or perhaps he chose to ignore the fact that the werebeast did not want to talk to him. “Did they wave some catnip at you and let you jump into a cage?”

“I ain’t a house cat!” Chuuya barked before being hit by a wave of dizziness. He collapsed against the cold floor as his ears started to ring and his vision spinning.

“Hey,” the vampire called, but Chuuya ignored him. He closed his eyes to fight off the wave of nausea. After lying still for a bit and having some blood flowed back into his head, Chuuya felt mildly better.

“You dead?”

“Are you an idiot?” Chuuya grumbled before sluggishly pushing himself up. The vampire frowned as he examined the werebeast’s movement.

“You’re starving.”

“No shit.”

Chuuya leaned back against the wall. He didn't have the energy to argue with the vampire. 

“Do they only give you that much to eat every day?”

“Every day?” Chuuya huffed. “That was my meal per week. Now shut up unless you want a rotting corpse next to you. I heard you leeches hate the smell of dead things despite sleeping in coffins.”

“We sleep in actual beds. Those are just human superstitions.” The vampire deadpanned.

Chuuya didn’t bother with him as he closed his eyes. He needed to store up energy if he wants to survive to get next week’s proportion. It didn’t take long for him to submerge into the familiar, welcoming darkness.

Chuuya didn’t know how long he has slept for. Being low on energy like this, it wasn’t unusual if he slept for days or even a whole week. Time was something impossible to tell when trapped in a small room with no window. The only thing he could tell was the number of years he has been trapped here for from the passing seasons every time he was let out.

When Chuuya woke up, it was from a harsh kick to his side, knocking him into the cold stone ground.

An angry voice shouted something, but Chuuya couldn’t understand the language.

The werebeast slowly opened his eyes. He stared up at two men standing over him, clad in heavy-looking armours. A black cat was perched on one of the men's shoulders. Its tiny head tilted up haughtily as golden eyes looked down upon him as if looking at a piece of filth.

As usual, Chuuya wanted to know how that cat would react if he were to gouge out those disgusting eyes. His raven-haired roommate just sat there, watching silently as Chuuya was dragged out the door by the chains on his neck.

The humans sitting around the large stadium cheered when Chuuya was thrown up onto the stage. Torches were burning brightly, illuminating the field and the hideous faces of the humans. A barrier was soon cast over the stage, preventing both creatures from escaping.

Chuuya’s eyes were dilated as he tried to make out his opponent this time. He was starving and his head still hurts. He flipped around and got onto all four. He couldn't see his opponent properly due to the hunger that's making his vision blurry, but that didn't matter. It was pointless to see who or what he's going to kill off anyways.

With a roar, Chuuya began to transform.

The crowd went wild as crimson glow shrouded the werebeast’s body. In a burst of blinding light, the petite boy was gone. In his place was a tiger that was all skins and bones, yet the ferociousness it was displaying made anyone that saw at a close distance cowered.

The cheering from the crowds went up by ten notches at the sight.

“…So noisy,” A certain vampire mumbled as he sat in the small, confined space. The entire room was pretty much shaking from the intense cheers coming from above.

He continued to count the seconds in his head. Picking up a pebble next to him, he slowly drew another line to the tally chart next to him.

As of this moment, this marks the seventh day since he got been thrown in here.

The noise eventually died down after half an hour. Soon, he heard footsteps and the jingling sound of chain approaching the room. When the door was kicked open, a familiar redhead drenched in blood was thrown ruthlessly onto the ground like a ragdoll.

The human secured the werebeast’s chain to the wall and left without giving the broken youth another look.

Chuuya curled into a ball, shivering and panting as he cradled his right leg that has been ripped off at the knee. The redhead tore what little piece of clothing he had and tied it around the wound to slow the bleeding. 

The vampire’s eyes gleamed the moment he sniffed the werebeast’s blood.

He reached out, pale hands extended towards the other boy only to be stopped by a sharp tug with metallic rattling sound resonating throughout the room. The raven looked down at the chains preventing him from going any further. His eyes widened in surprise. He hadn’t even realized he had reached out like that.

Chestnut brown eyes observed the alluring blood pooling over the ground. Unable to resist, he stretched his hand out as far as he could. He was able to reach out just enough to brush the tip of his middle over the edge of the crimson puddle. He immediately withdrew his hand and licked the small red stain off his fingertip.

The blood was so rich and filled with vitality that just a small taste filled him with strength. Just a tiny morsel and it left the vampire desiring more. It was a feeling he had never felt in his entire life.

This was the feeling of being alive.

Unable to contain the thirst for blood, the brown in the vampire’s eyes were completely gone. His pupils were dilated and gleaming in the purest, uncontaminated red.

Chuuya sluggishly opened his eyes when his instincts flared up, warning him of danger. He squinted his eyes at the other occupant in the room and was met by a pair of predatory gaze.

For the very first time since their meeting, ocean blue eyes softened.

The werebeast slowly uncurled his body. He stretched the stump of his leg towards the vampire. A pool of blood began to form as it expanded towards the vampire. 

The raven looked at the werebeast with a flicker of surprise in his glowing eyes before he hid it. Pale hand reached out once more. He was nowhere near touching the werebeast, but a good half of his hand was able to touch the blood. Hot red fluid bathed his hand as he ran his tongue over his palm, savoring the sweetness of the divine blood.

Chuuya observed the vampire for a while before finally closing his eyes. Completely worn out from the battle and injuries, he fell into a deep slumber…

When Chuuya woke up, it was to the smell of food.

Without even thinking, he reached for the source of the smell and grabbed onto a piece of old meat. He practically gulped it down without chewing. The fight and losing a leg took a huge toll on his body. If he doesn’t eat, he won’t be able to last much longer. Thankfully his captors knew that as well, so the meat he was given this time was a tad bit bigger than what he usually gets.

After the food rested in his stomach, Chuuya laid there with his eyes closed. He wasn't going to drift back to sleep, but the less movement he makes, the easier it'll be for his body to store up lost energy. He wiggled his toe a little, just to confirm that his leg has completely regenerated. He wondered how long he had passed out for this time…

“Why did you do that?”

Chuuya reluctantly looked to his roommate who just can’t seem to get the concept of leaving someone alone.

The vampire was still sitting against the wall like before. He didn’t even look like he had shifted from that spot at all. The easy-going look he wore on his face was gone. He stared at the redhead with those dark eyes that didn’t reflect a spark of the dim like hanging over their heads. His face was expressionless and impossible to read.

Chuuya wondered if this was what the vampire’s really like under all that façade.

“Did what?” Chuuya shut his eyes again and rolled into a more comfortable position with his back to the vampire.

“Your blood.” The vampire pointed out with a deep frown on his face—not that Chuuya could see. “You could just let me starve. It’s not like I can do anything to you.” To emphasize his word, the vampire held up his hands and shook them, causing the chains dangling off the metallic handcuffs to jingle.  

"You were hungry," Chuuya muttered, more like telling that to himself than to the vampire. "Do I need more reasons than that?”

His response seemed to have caught the vampire off guard.

The silence dragged on as Chuuya waited for a response, but it didn't come. Just when he was pondering of going back to sleep, the vampire finally spoke. 

“…You don’t make any sense. We’re technically enemies.”

“Hah?” Chuuya impatiently snapped open his eyes and glared at the vampire from over his shoulder. “I don’t care about whatever stupid grudge is between werebeast and vampires. It got nothing to do with me. Don’t group me with the rest of those idiots.”

That seemed to spark the vampire’s interest as he looked over the redhead.

“You’re an outcast of your clan.” The vampire said certainly as his sharp eyes relaxed by the slightest bit. “Werebeast has intense training right at birth to drill the hatred of vampires into the younglings. For a werebeast to say something like that means you've never gone through those training."

“For a leech, you sure like to blabber to your enemy," Chuuya said dryly. “I’ve never heard of a vampire drink a werebeast’s blood. You didn’t even hesitate. I thought leeches rather die than drink from animals.”

“Oh? Were you testing me?” The vampire’s eyes twinkled in amusement.

Chuuya clicked his tongue and looked away, refusing to answer to that. Truthfully, he had forgotten about that until the vampire started giving him a lecture about his own culture. All he saw was that the vampire was hungry and needed blood, so he gave it to him.

It was just as simple as that.

Unknown to Chuuya, the vampire was grinning as he looked over the werebeast.

“I’m an outcast as well.” He suddenly said.

Chuuya looked back in surprise.

He hadn’t expected to hear that. Then again, perhaps he should have expected it. Chuuya met a vampire once. It was right here on this very stage humans set for them. When the vampire laid eyes on him, the look of disgust and excitement to kill was something Chuuya was all too familiar with. It was the same look on the villagers’ faces back home whenever vampires were mentioned.

Chuuya never understood why.

Just like the raven-haired vampire had said, werebeasts educate their young ones the moment they’re born to hate vampires. Vampires do the same. When asked why, nobody can give out a proper, non-racist answer. All they knew was to hate one another. No one remembers the reason that started it all, nor do they care.

It had become a part of who they are to hate each other. It was stupid.

“The whole werebeast and vampire fuel got nothing to do with me. I just wanted to find a quiet place where I can painlessly die." The vampire sighed. "Of all places I ended here, where I'll be tortured for the rest of my life."

"After they starve you enough for about a month, you'll get your first match," Chuuya informed him curtly. “Just let your opponent tear you into shred and die.”

“No way.” The vampire chided as if Chuuya had suggested something outrageous—which he probably did, but the moron’s suicidal. “I hate pain! Why else would I say painless?”

“…I’m starting to see why you were kicked out of your coven.”

"Well, you're wrong about that!" The vampire announced proudly. “I wasn’t kicked out. I left on my own.”

“Yeah right.” Chuuya wasn’t buying it.

"So what did you do to get toss out?" The vampire seemed pretty interested in the werebeast’s backstory.

Chuuya leveled the vampire a look. He remained silent for a while before finally speaking.

“Ever heard of Arahabaki?”

“The God of Calamity.” The vampire’s expression turned serious as he looked over Chuuya. “You’re from the royal bloodline?”

“Yeah.” Chuuya snorted, his tone filled with sarcasm and mockery. “Only one out of a thousand to possess it. I drew that lucky card.”

Arahabaki was this ancient bloodline that brought immense power and fame to the werebeast.

It was said that Arahabaki was once the god of werebeasts. Only those with royal bloodline—the ones that made contracts with Arahabaki—can use its power of destruction. It was this power that allowed the werebeasts to climb up the food chain and stand next to the vampires at the top of the pyramid as equals. In the past, werebeast with the royal bloodline were worshipped because in a sense they are god’s vessel.

Nowadays, everyone just viewed this bloodline—viewed him—as a curse.

Throughout the long history of werebeasts, the method to control Arahabaki had been lost. Any werebeasts that uses its power would just go on a rampage. Their powers will increase immensely and they will go on a rampage until the user dies. They will destroy everything in sight, regardless of allies or enemies. Nowadays, Arahabaki is simply known as Corruption.

Ever since the villagers discovered he got the cursed bloodline, they treated him like the plague. The only fortunate part was that although Corruption brought him scorn, it also brought him protection. As much as his entire village wanted to kill him, they feared that it may unleash Corruption. They fear him more than their hatred for him. Every day when Chuuya went outside, he was faced with loathing and frightful looks from everyone around him. When the adults weren't looking, he would even get rocks thrown at him by kids his age.

That was why when the village was raided by the humans, Chuuya didn’t particularly felt anything. He didn’t care about the villagers that were killed, nor did he care about the fate of other kids his age.

That was how detached he was from his race.

“That’s why I was sent here. Werebeasts with royal bloodlines are more durable and won’t die too easily.” Chuuya’s tone was filled with mockery as he said that. "There were witches among the humans that attacked my village. They were able to detect my bloodline with some sort of device. Put some sort of spell on the collar to seal away my ability and Arahabaki.”

Chuuya wondered why he was telling the vampire all these things. Perhaps it has been too long since he had a decent conversation, or perhaps he was lonelier than he thought…

“You saw that black cat, didn’t you?” Chuuya continued. "That's the witch responsible for keeping us under control here."

“Witch huh…” The vampire hummed before a smirk graced his lips. “I’ve heard some interesting things during my travels. Would you like to hear, chibi?”

“Who’re you calling chibi?!”

“The humans are plotting to start a Witch hunt.”

“…What!?” Chuuya blinked, unable to believe what he just heard. “That’s ridiculous! Witches are the only humans that can combat the other species!”

“Exactly.” The vampire nodded. “Once the human conquer all the other species, they will exterminate the witches.”

"You sound like the humans will win." Chuuya frowned.

"They will." The vampire nodded certainly. "They may lack power, but their numbers greatly surpass all other races. Of course, if all species unite, the annihilation of humans would be a breeze, but each species are too invested in their priorities and got too much pride to set aside old grudges. Even with humans raiding and capturing us, we're still fighting one another rather than ganging up against a common enemy. The human knows that, which is why they will win this war. Once they do, we'll all be under their control."

Chuuya wanted to argue. He wanted to say that’s impossible. After all, of all species on this planet, humans are the weakest. Sure they have witches, but every species got veteran fighters that know exactly how to deal with them.

However, he couldn’t deny what the vampire said was true. After all, his village was the perfect example. Had their village’s warriors not set off to the border war against the vampires, the humans wouldn’t be able to invade his village and massacred them. Even with the humans attacking them, they’re still fighting vampires at every chance they get.

Wait a minute…

Chuuya inhaled a sharp breath when he registered something Dazai said—specifically that last part.

Now that he thought about it…why did those humans choose night time to attack them? Werebeasts may come in many kinds, but they’re all nocturnal creatures. That was because they have higher advantages during the night with their superior senses, but most importantly, it was to defend against the vampires that are only active during nighttime.

Why attack them during the night when it's at their disadvantage? Chuuya could only come up with one answer. The humans masked their attack as an attack from vampires. They are using both species' hate for one another to their advantage.

Chuuya laughed.

He couldn’t believe how it took him this long to realize the truth.

Perhaps it wasn’t just the werebeasts. Perhaps the vampires will go home to find their coven slaughtered with evidence of werebeasts littered all over the place. The two idiotic races will continue to bite at each other’s throat while the real culprit walks free with a bunch of new slaves.

“What about the witches?” Chuuya asked curiously. “Why get rid of the only protection they have?”

“Once human wins this war, witches will be hailed as their specie's saviors." The vampire replied. "Despite being so weak, human are proud creatures—especially males. In their culture, males are the dominant creature. They will never accept or allow females to have more power than them."

“Just for that?” Chuuya gapped in disbelieve. Now that he thought about it, aside from the witch, all the humans he saw in this place are males. Even in the audience seats, there weren't any females around. 

“Just for that.” The vampire smirked. “To oblivious citizens, they’ll just say that witches are no different from us, and the mass will agree that they should be eliminated.”

“Heh!” Chuuya cracked out a smile as he flipped onto his back to stare up at the ceiling. “If that’s the case, then I’m starting to feel sorry for that witch.”

He snickered for a while before sitting up.

“I take that back. Witches can all burn in hell for all I care.”

“Chibi—”

“Don’t call me that!”

“You never gave me your name, what did you expect me to call you?”

Chuuya paused a bit, remembering that they never did exchange names.

“…Nakahara Chuuya.”

“Dazai Osamu,” the vampire—Dazai responded, “So, Chuuya—”

“Who said you can call me by my given name?!”

“—what plans do you have after leaving this place?”

“Who knows?” Chuuya leaned back against the cold wall. “Well…for the time being, it’s to eat my fill. I’ll think after that.”

“How like an animal.” The vampire commented with a smirk. “You don’t seem weird out by my question.”

“Like hell I’ll stay here forever and play games with those humans.” Chuuya spat as he glared down at the chains around his wrists. “I’ll leave this damn place. And when I do I’ll rip them into shreds—exactly the way they wanted me to on that stage of theirs.”

“What a brat.”

“Hah?!”

“But that’s not a bad idea~”

The vampire held up his hands with one hand readied in a snapping motion.

The werebeast looked at him weirdly.

With a snap of his finger, the metal cuff around the vampire’s wrists and neck suddenly opened up and clattered onto the floor.

Chuuya’s jaw almost hit the ground as he stared at the vampire who was up on his feet, rolling his shoulders around with his joints making satisfying pop.

“It’s only been twelve days and I’m already getting sore muscle~”

“H-how did you—?!” Chuuya stammered as he looked at the open cuffs lying on the ground. From here, he could see the written incantation on the inside of the vampire’s metal collar. Chuuya is certain that's the spell used to suppress their abilities. He had even tried to pick the lock in the past only to find that there's some sort of protection spell preventing him from sticking anything into the keyhole. So how did this vampire get out?

“I’ll give you two options.” The vampire said as he stood over the chained werebeast. “One, you will come with me. Two, you stay here and wait for who knows how long until your next chance to escape.”

Chuuya frowned as he glared up at the vampire. “What are you plotting?”

"Whatever do you mean?" The vampire's tone was so sweet and innocent that it was just reeking with ulterior motives.

"You could leave any time you wanted," Chuuya pointed out. “What are you playing here?”

“You make me sound like the bad guy here.” The vampire heaved out a heavy breathe as if the redhead was some unreasonable kid. “I simply want a collaboration.”

Chuuya narrowed his eyes, not believing a single word the vampire is saying.

"There's a huge barrier cast over this place. To nullify the barrier, I need to find the witch. But as you can see, I don't have that kind of fighting power to survive until I can find her in this place."

“What do you mean nullify?” Chuuya demanded, sharply catching that keyword.

"My ability allows me to cancel other abilities with a touch." The vampire explained. “Abilities and spells are useless against me. You should know what that means don’t you, Arahabaki?”

Blue eyes dilated as the werebeast stared at the vampire. Chuuya didn’t speak for a long time. He just stared at the vampire and the vampire stared back, waiting for his response.

"...How can I trust you to stop me?"

“You don’t.” The vampire replied tersely.

“Tch.” Chuuya clicked his teeth. He didn’t like not being in control, but this was the first chance he had gotten in years. Who knows when his next chance will be?

“I’ll kill you if you’re late. Even if I die I will drag you down.”

“I much rather want to die with a lovely maiden.” The vampire gagged as if the very thought of dying with the werebeast disgusted him.

“Take this off.” Chuuya tilted his head back, giving the vampire access to the collar around his neck.

Dazai’s hand reached down. When the tip of his fingers brushed by the collar, Chuuya felt whatever magic binding him disappeared, leaving just the cold body of the metal tightly gripping his neck. His keen ears picked up the sound of a lock being picked. Then, the weight around his neck vanished as the heavy collar fell off, hitting the stone ground and creating a rather impressive dent in the shattered rock.

The vampire whistled. He wasn’t showing the slightest bit surprised that the werebeast has been moving with such tremendous weight on him. It was as if he somehow already knew.

The redhead cranked his head, testing his new range of movement before looking up at a small pin the vampire was holding between his fingers.

“Need help?” Dazai drawled as he waved around his lock picking tool.

With a huff, crimson light outlined the metal cuffs on the werebeast’s hands. The thick metal began to deform, wrenching off the werebeast’s slender wrists and crashing into the stone ground with such force that a huge crater with a size that nearly took up the entire room was formed.

Chuuya sucked in a shuddering breath. A droplet of sweat rolled down his forehead. Using just this tiny bit of power was already taking a toll on his body. It was utterly pathetic.

“I won’t last very long.” He warned the vampire as he got onto his feet.

“Yeah, I know," Dazai responded with a smirk before he stepped back against the wall and melted into his own shadow.

Chuuya stared at the place where the vampire disappeared into. He could still feel the vampire's presence within the room. The other was hiding quietly in the shadows like those humans in the audience seats, watching the entertainment that's going to play out.

Crafty bastard.

The werebeast looked down at his wrists. The skins underneath the metal cuffs were red and wrinkled from years and years of abuse. Hearing the sound of roaring cheers coming from above, Chuuya looked up to the ceiling. A wide smile spread over his lips as he gazed at the ceiling.

He crouched down as crimson light outlined his silhouette. The werebeast crouched down as the ground under his feet was ripped out and suspended in midair—supporting the red-head.

“Better keep up, shitty Dazai.” The werebeast scoffed before he shot towards the ceiling. With a kick, he smashed a hole right through the ceiling.

The loud cheering was immediately stopped when a hole suddenly appeared at the edge of the stage. A boy with reddish hair flew out from the hole and into the sky, stopping just inches from the giant barrier covering the entire stadium.

Chuuya took a deep breath to calm his speeding heart as he stared at the full moon before his eyes. It was weird. He has always seen the sky whenever he was thrown up here on this stage, but for some reason, it felt like this was the first time in years that he was finally able to see the sky.

“Freedom, huh?” Chuuya mumbled as his eyes focused on the wall in front of him.

The barrier was made out of a layer of transparent membrane that is barely visible unless looked closer. It looked very thin and fragile, but a foul aura was practically radiating off the thing. There was even a weird attraction coming from this barrier as if it was alive and tempting him to touch it.

Chuuya felt his hair stood up as he realized what it was. He had seen it once, and it was when those humans invaded their village. A barrier like this was cast over the village to prevent anyone from escaping. 

Just a simple touch and this barrier will suck out the souls of any creatures that aren't human. The barrier itself was made purely of these unfortunate souls. The moment it sucked out a soul, the soul will be merged with the barrier, becoming one with it and enforcing its power. 

The one Chuuya has seen before was much weaker compared to this one. This barrier must have killed off a lot of creatures. Perhaps they were even fed to it for that sole purpose.

“Damn witches.” Chuuya cursed before another thought came to him.

If this is a barrier that sucks out souls of its victims, then what Dazai said about being unable to leave was a bunch of bullshits! Vampires were the only creatures that don’t have souls. They are creatures that dwell on the life force of other life forms to stay alive. Since they got no soul of their own, this blasted barrier wouldn’t have worked on that guy! The most it’ll do was probably make him feel even hungrier after walking through it!

“DAMN IT!” Chuuya snarled as he realized he’s been played.

That lying, scheming, son of a scoundrel!

If this barrier was an obstacle for the vampire, then they can call it even after he gets rid of it. However, if the barrier was never a problem to the vampire, then it won’t be a collaboration, but just the vampire one-sidedly helping him!

The first was freeing him; the second will be saving his life from Arahabaki.

These aren’t debts that he can easily brush off. The vampire must have done this knowing that he won’t be able to just walk away without returning some kind of favour to call it even. In other words, the vampire wanted something from him, but it wasn’t breaking out of this place.

With a frustrated scream, Chuuya shot down like a meteor and crashed into the stage, completely obliterating it. 

The two creatures fighting on the stage and blown off by the force.

Chuuya reached out, easily grabbing onto the tail of a giant lizard thrice his size and held it over his head like it weighed nothing. 

"This is perfect." Chuuya glowered at the hissing Basilisk desperately trying to break free. “I was just feeling hungry.”

In a blink of an eye, Chuuya transformed into a tiger. He slammed the Basilisk into the ground, breaking its neck before he used his sharp fangs and tore off its flesh.

The audiences cheered, believing this was part of their nightly show. The guards on the sideline were in a mixture of confusion and panic, not certain if this was a special event the higher-ups decided to host or not.

Chuuya knew he couldn’t stall. He swallowed the flesh of the Basilisk and drank its blood. Once he had enough, he transformed back into his human form. He wiped the blood staining his mouth with the back of his hand and laughed at the oblivious humans in the audience seats.

When his keen ears caught a string of gibberish, Chuuya used the power of gravity and leaped into the sky just as a yellow beam of light shot by where he stood, denigrating ground and the half-eaten Basilisk in a blink of an eye.

Chuuya landed next to the newly formed hole and glared at a woman dressed in all black with a pointed hat. Like all witches tend to be, she was a plain-looking woman—though probably beautiful by human standard—wearing a black dress that looked like a cheap rip-off from fairy creatures.

In Chuuya’s eyes, the woman was no less hideous than a blobfish.

Her lips that were painted in the colour of fresh blood were rapidly moving to cast her next spell. She twirled her twig and Chuuya took off into the sky as chains shot out from the ground in an attempt to capture him. Even now, she wore an arrogant look on her face, like she was dealing with a pest and not a werebeast that could potentially kill her and everyone else in the vicinity.

The witch was strong, but just from two attacks, Chuuya could tell she’s an amateur in battle. Perhaps this was the first time she even engaged in a fight. She was most likely put in charge of this place due to her high magic affinity. The witch was too full of her power and after years and years of governing these chained up creatures that lost their ability to fight back, she has forgotten just how strong they were. Even veteran witches don’t engage in combat without proper preparations and a bunch of human meat shields she could hide behind.

This dumb woman just charged in to show off how strong she is.

Chuuya had always thought that when this day came, he would tear the woman apart with his claws the second he gets the chance. Maybe he’ll also go up to those humans cheering from the audience seats and snap off their heads and rip out their hearts.

He expected a lot of anger and rage…but never did he expected calmness.

As he jumped around to dodge the chains, he felt nothing inside him. He looked at the faces of the humans, then to the guards that regularly abused them, and finally at the haughty witch.

He felt absolutely nothing when looking at them.

In his eyes at this very moment eyes, they were all just dead objects.

That was all there is to it.

“Grantors of dark disgrace,” Chuuya chanted as crimson markings appeared over his sickly pale skin, “you need not to wake me again.”

━━━━━━━━ ✠ ━━━━━━━━

"Do you have four stomachs or something?" Dazai wondered as he watched the weretiger shoved food into his mouth. Well, he supposed he couldn't say shove, as the other was quite elegant in how he ate…astonishingly.

Still, the speed he was displaying was not normal.

Chuuya ignored the vampire as he cleaned every single plate without leaving a morsel of food behind. At first, the humans around them would stare at the redhead with their jaws slack, wondering just how much the petite boy could eat. Eventually, they got bored and went back to minding their own business.

The waitress ran back and forth, taking away the empty plates and bringing up new ones.

"Bring another basket of baguette—actually make that two basket, five shepherd's pie, some more roast lambs, chicken, pork, beef, whatever you got," Dazai told the waitress as his eyes roamed over the menu. "You know what, just bring everything that is filing, no need to bother with the taste. If you can stuff him to death, I'll pay triple the amount."

The waitress screamed when a knife flew right past her and towards the raven's head. The vampire didn't even look up as his hand shot up, grabbing the knife by the handle before hurling it back. The woman's knees were shaking as she watched the red-head catching the knife with ease and stabbing it into the chicken.

"You got that?" The vampire asked disinterestedly, eyes never once lifted from the menu.

Nodding hastily, the waitress scurried away to have the cook prepare the next round of feast.

The vampire let out a long sigh. "I'm helping you order food and you tried to skewer me."

"Don't think that just because I don't understand that you can talk shit about me," Chuuya growled with a vein throbbing in his forehead. There was just something he didn't like about the vampire's attitude just then, so he acted.

"Animal instincts huh?" Dazai mumbled as he looked at the way the werebeast was glowering at him. He could almost imagine a small orange cat, hissing and puffing itself up to look big and threatening. The vampire suddenly felt a strange urge to tease his companion more.

Unfortunately, a hushed whisper soon brought his attention elsewhere.

Chuuya took a bite of his chicken while Dazai ran his finger over the rim of a wine cup. While neither of them acted out of ordinary, both of them focused their attention to the back of the restaurant where a group of soldiers sat. Usually, these human soldiers were loud and noisy, but this group here was unusually quiet.

They chatted quietly among themselves, all of their faces serious and some even started to get anger the more they conversed. After listening to them for a while, Chuuya turned to Dazai who had picked up a cup and was playing with the dark fluid inside.

"They're talking about your masterpiece from three days ago," Dazai informed him with a sly grin. "Since the witch is missing, they're convinced that the destruction of the fighting ring was her doing."

Chuuya lightly bit on the tip of his fork as he looked over those soldiers. "This is why you got rid of that witch's body?"

"I told you, humans don't trust witches. All you need is to give them a reason and they'll push all the blames onto the witches."

"How stupid."

Dazai set the cup he was playing around with in front of Chuuya. Chuuya looked at the weird liquid inside for a moment before picking it up and taking a sip.

He quickly spat it back out.

"What the fuck is this?!" He coughed, feeling the sour and bitter aftertaste sensation in his throat.

"It's call wine," Dazai sniggered, "Human makes it with fermented grape juice."

"Fermented? It's rotten?!" Chuuya choked in disbelieve. After eating rotten food for so long, he wouldn't even care if it's crawling with bugs. But why would human willingly eat rotten food?

"That's why you're a kid." Dazai deadpanned.

"Who are you calling a kid?!"

A man came by just then, dropping a large barrel right next to their table, saying something to Dazai before leaving. Confused, Chuuya looked down to the barrel. He could hear water sound coming from inside it. When he smelled the familiar scent coming from it and that iconic cow mark drawn on the wooden surface, it didn't take a genius to find out what it was.

The damn leech had ordered an entire barrel of milk for him!

People screamed as a table flew across the restaurant—along with the body of a raven-haired man—right into the group of soldiers at the very back…

Half an hour later, Chuuya and Dazai walked out into the busy street.

The restaurant workers and the owner lined up at the doorway, wide smiles on every one of their faces as they waved goodbye to the two youngsters walking away from the restaurant.

"How much did you pay them?" Chuuya questioned skeptically. He didn't understand human currency, but he could tell it's not a small amount. After all, he did nearly take apart the restaurant. The bodies of those idiot soldiers that tried to hack him with their swords were still piled up in the middle of the dirt road with white foams gushing from their mouths.

Dazai was humming as he twirled a brown leather pouch around his index finger. It was the same pouch he had swiped off those human soldiers when the werebeast threw him (and the table) into them.

Chuuya's blood boiled at the thought of being used by this bastard…again.

"Enough to let them buy a new restaurant," Dazai replied. "For mere foot soldiers to have so much money, it seems the higher-ups of this town are quite corrupted."

Chuuya couldn't understand the concept of money. Werebeasts never needed those kinds of things. They live pretty much like wild animals. They hunt for their food and make their own home. Whenever anyone needed something, they just share what they have.

Well, at least that's what it seemed to him anyways.

"Now what?"

"What do you mean?" Dazai was feigning innocence.

"You tell me, you're the one that made me come with you!"

"I never said you had to." Dazai countered, causing the vein on Chuuya's head to throb.

"Don't get me wrong, I'm just repaying the favour. The sooner we call it even, the sooner I can leave!" The werebeast grumbled. "You got something you want me to do, don't you?"

Dazai looked up to the starry sky, exposing his delicate pale neck wrapped up in bandages. His face was serious, lips slightly parted as he let out a long, thoughtful sound.

"Aaaaah…nope."

"What?" Chuuya blinked, wondering if he heard wrong.

"I don't have anything I want you to do."

"Then why the hell have me come along with you?!"

"Now, now, you're making a scene!" Dazai chortled, gesturing to the humans gawking at the odd Asian pair. "There's an inn just down the street! We should hurry before they run out of room!"

"Hey, bastard! Hold it!" Chuuya swore as he chased after the vampire.

In the end, there was only one room left—or that's what Dazai claimed anyways. That was fine with Chuuya since they still have unfinished business.

Once they've settled in their room, Chuuya was instantly on the lanky vampire.

"Explain yourself." He threatened dangerously.

Dazai sat on the soft bed, looking up at the werebeast standing over him with arms crossed over his chest. Sad that it's only at times like this that the werebeast would be taller.

Chuuya didn't know why, but the way the vampire's looking at him made his blood boil, so he slammed a foot into the side of the bed and loomed over the vampire.

"What games are you playing here? You can't expect me to believe you want me to follow you around without any reason."

"Of course not!" Dazai said in an offended tone. "You're going to be my dog after all!"

"…Hah?"

"If I tell you my leg is itchy, you scratch it! If I want to drink blood, you go kidnap a beautiful blond woman in her early twenties and bring her to me!"

CRASH

The entire bed was crushed into pieces as Dazai fell into the pieces of broken wooden frames and fiber fillings of the mattress. When he looked up, Chuuya has his foot hovering over the vampire's face.

"They say that vampires can live as long as their hearts are intact." The werebeast muttered, tilting his head to the side as murderous glint flickered within his eyes. "Want to test that out?"

"I hate pain, so I'll pass." Dazai sighed, putting both hands up in surrender. "You can't take a joke, can you? If you want a reason, you can say that it's to survive the war."

"What do you mean?"

"Since you were locked up pretty much all your life, you wouldn't know, but we're close to the final war."

"What final war?"

"The world war."

"World war?!" Chuuya gapped, unable to believe what he was hearing.

"A worldwide war involving every single species. The entire planet will become a warzone" Dazai spoke in such light-hearted tone it sounded like he was discussing the weather rather than an incoming apocalypse. "This is what will happen when you keep slaughtering and enslaving other species. Once they finally realize the peril they're in, every single species will see everyone and everything else as enemies that need to be eliminated, then a full out war will emerge."

"And human will come out victorious." Chuuya narrowed his eyes, still remembering what Dazai had told him. He slowly pulled back his foot, allowing the vampire to sit up. "You're saying this war will come soon?"

"In two years, to be precise." Dazai hummed. "When the war comes, nowhere will be safe. Money will mean nothing and survival will only be for the fittest. If you want to live, then we need to collaborate."

"I thought you wanted to die." Chuuya kindly reminded him.

"I rather die at the hands of a beautiful lady than some barbaric, racist animals."

"You want me to kill you off right now?" Chuuya gritted his teeth before pushing his anger back down. If what this vampire said is true, then he'll need this bastard alive. Being the only one that speaks his native language and the ability to keep Corruption under control, he needed Dazai.

And with only the ability to nullify other powers, the vampire needed protection.

It was a fair deal…given that everything he said was the truth that is.

"So, what will it be, Chuuya?" Dazai wore that knowing smirk on his face as he held out his hand.

The bastard was so certain the werebeast will take his deal. As much as Chuuya wanted to prove him wrong, he can't. He got no other choice but to accept this deal. He slapped his hand against the vampire's and held it in a brutal grip.

"If I catch you doing anything funny behind my back, I will put a stake through your stomach and roast you in the sunlight."

"Such a brat." The vampire grunted, causing a huge vein to throb as Chuuya applied all his strength into the handshake. The cracking sounds of breaking bones resonated throughout the room.

"GAAAH! You're such a brat!"

"You're a brat too!"

"Tell me that when you grow taller!"

"I'm only fifteen, I'm still growing! You're like what, fifty?!"

"I'm fifteen as well!"

(ﾉꐦ ⊙曲ఠ)ﾉ︵ ┻━┻

"Wow…so that's how you and Dazai-san met?" Atsushi said in fascination after listening to his mentor's story.

Chuuya sat on the barstool, sipping on a glass of wine as he regarded the young tiger's excitement. "You're more invested in this plain old story than I am."

"I just think it's amazing." Atsushi smiled sheepishly as he scratched the back of his head. "I know what happened during the Dark Age, but hearing Chuuya-san's story made it feel more real."

"Well, it was hundreds of years ago." Blue eyes drifted down to the wine in his hand. "To you brats, it might as well be a fairy tale."

"But Chuuya-san and Dazai-san lived through it, right? In that case, it's not a fairy tale."

Chuuya looked at his disciple with a small hint of surprise before a smile lifted his lips.

"But why was Dazai-san in Switzerland?"

"To escape from his coven," Chuuya answered. "That shitty mackerel came from a strong coven of pureblood vampires. At the time, they ruled over Yokohama and got connections all over Japan. After deserting his coven, he had to leave the country."

"Yokohama?" Atsushi's eyes widened. "You don't mean…?!"

"Yes. The same place where Akutagawa came from. That coven has merged with other species over time and turned into one big organization. That is the Port Mafia."

"Then is it safe for us to be here?" Atsushi asked with worries lacing his voice. "What if the Port Mafia—"

"Calm down, kid." Chuuya chuckled at the frantic look on his face. "We struck a peace treaty long ago. They won't bother us as long as we don't bother them."

Atsushi let out a sigh of relieve, glad to hear everything was alright. "So then…was Dazai-san captured by the humans the moment he left Japan?"

"Capture?" Chuuya snorted as he remembered the ridiculous reason that landed the vampire in the cell as him. "That moron didn't get captured. He let those humans take him."

"Eh?!" Atsushi was dumbfounded. That was certainly not what he had expected, but then again this was Dazai they're talking about...

"He heard rumours about a werebeast with royal bloodline in the dueling ring, so he came to find me." Chuuya rested his chin against his palm. "The bastard planned everything out from the beginning, just so I would team up with him for the Dark Age."

There was more to that though.

What Dazai had planned wasn't only for the survival during the Dark Age. Even back then, the vampire was looking even further to the future. Dazai had sought Chuuya out for the creation of Double Black. With their combined powers, they were quickly made known to the world. It didn't matter what species they were. Whenever people caught wind that Double Black might be nearby, they will flee the vicinity, fearing to get caught up in their battle.

It was due to this that they were able to live peacefully right now.

After human came out victorious during the Dark Age, life became harsher for all other species. It was only in recent years that they were getting fairer treatment, but many were still slaves made to serve the humans. A good example would be that creep Tatsuhiko Shibusawa. How many different species suffered at his hands? How many were tortured, wishing for death that just wouldn't come?

These kinds of humans exist all around the world.

Dazai being Dazai, had another reason to form Double Black. Perhaps that’s his ultimate goal from the beginning. Everything he did was simply to pull free from his old coven—the current Port Mafia. With Chuuya by his side, Dazai has a chip to bargain for his freedom. It was thanked to this that they were able to form a contract

Everything went exactly as that arrogant vampire had planned.

The only thing Dazai hadn't accounted for was the change in their relationship…as well as raising two kids. These two things were probably the greatest surprises that scheming mind wasn't able to predict.

"Honey~ we're back!" An irritating voice sang as the front door flung open, revealing the tall and lanky vampire carrying multiple bags of groceries with his disciple in toll.

"Oh, you're back," Chuuya said disinterestedly as he continued to swirl the wine around his glass.

"Welcome back, Dazai-san, Ryuu!" Atsushi greeted as he hurried over to take the load off the vagabond vampire.

"Did you miss me, darling?" Dazai pounced towards Chuuya, only for the redhead to shove a palm into his face to stop his advance.

"Don't touch me!" Chuuya snarled with veins popping up from beneath his forehead. "I told you not to come near me for a month!"

"Chuuya! Don't be so cruel!" Dazai whined. "If I keep sleeping on the couch like this my back won't be able to take it!"

"And my back can?!" Chuuya snapped, now using both hands in an attempt to push the vampire away. "You kept going even when I told you to stop!"

"That was Chuuya's fault!" Dazai held his hands to his cheeks and swooned at the beautiful memories of last night. "What kind of man would stop when their mate is looking at them with those teary sapphire blue eyes, cheeks blushing in cherry blossom pink and hiccupping when—"

BAM

With a simple push of his hand (and the power of gravity), Chuuya slammed the vampire face-first into the floor. Thankfully, he still remembered that they're at home, so he held back on his strength. Otherwise, they'll need to replace the finely polished floor. This was one good thing about moving to a new home. If this was back in their dusty old manor, Chuuya wouldn't have cared.

When Chuuya's sharp eyes snapped up, he saw Atsushi and Akutagawa sorting out the groceries bags and putting the food into the fridge. Akutagawa looked like he couldn't care less (or rather, too used to the scene), while Atsushi was desperately pretending not to have heard anything and failing miserably. The kid's entire face was burning up and his movements were very robotic.

"So Atushi-kun, what did you two do while we're gone?" Dazai appeared right beside the younger weretiger, surprising the poor boy and causing him to drop the carton of milk he was putting away.

Dazai stood there with his hands in his pockets, smiling brightly as if he hadn't kissed the floor just seconds ago.

"O-oh, Chuuya-san was just telling me how you guys met!" Atsushi spluttered, eyes darting every now and then at Akutagawa, signaling for help. The young vampire spared Atsushi half a second of his precious time before he returned to whatever he was doing, completely brushing him aside.

This caused a vein to pop over the white weretiger. He'll remember this.

"Ah, brings back memories." Dazai sighed blissfully. "Chuuya was so adorable back then~"

"AH?" Chuuya glared daggers at his mate.

"I don't mean anything bad!" Dazai hurriedly explained. With his mate mad at him like this, anything he says would be equivalent to stepping on a landmine.

He only wanted to tease his mate a bit last night, but he went overboard and pissed him off instead. This was all Chuuya's fault for being so cute though. Not his.

"Atsushi-kun!" Dazai spun around dramatically to white-haired boy cradling the milk. "Next year will be your eighteenth birthday! You'll finally be legal to bond with Ryuunosuke!"

The carton of milk fell back onto the ground. Atsushi's face was burning up to the point where steams could be seen rolling off his skin. Behind him, Akutagawa had frozen up. In fact, it wasn't just him. Rashoumon seemed to have frozen as well with how stiff the fabric became.

This spiked Chuuya's interest as he set down the wine glass he had been playing around with.

"That's right!" The redhead agreed as he leaned over the table. "Have you two talked over yet? Vampire's thirst for blood will increase during sex so you should—"

"CHUUYA-SAN!" Atsushi screamed, mortified that the older weretiger was going to give him the talk.

"What, don't tell me you're getting shy over something like this?" Chuuya teased.

"W-we um…" Atsushi fidgeted, embarrass and uncertain of how to tell their mentors.

"We decided to take more time," Akutagawa said as he came to stand beside his lover. Atsushi looked up at Akutagawa. There was a small look of surprise on his face before that surprise melted into warmth. With his lover beside him, he regained his confidence and nodded firmly to Chuuya.

Chuuya looked back and forth between the two. He smiled at how uptight they were being.

"Take all the time you need." He waved at the pair. "Once you perform the bond, it'll be for life. It's normal to need time to think about it. Took me fifty years to finally decide to bond with this mackerel." He said, jabbing a thumb at his lanky companion.

"Chuuya, you wound me!" Dazai cried with a hand over his heart, yet his expression didn't have a hint of sadness for someone being hurt. If anything, his burnt umber eyes were twinkling in amusement.

"You two are worried whether or not you can stay together for the rest of your life, correct?" Dazai walked over to join own mate's side. He gently placed a hand onto Chuuya's shoulder. To his delight, the weretiger didn't throw him over his shoulder and allowed the contact. "The fact that you're worried about this means you won't have any problems. After all, werebeasts and vampires are destined to become mates."

"What do you mean?" Atushi exchanged looks with Akutagawa. This was the first time they were ever told of this. Since when did the two sworn enemies become destined mate materials?

"Oh, that's easy to figure out if you think about it," Dazai told them. "The difference in our body temperature is one. Vampires are creatures born in coldness. Unable to come into contact with sunlight or fire, it’s impossible for us to feel physical heat. Werebeasts, on the other hand, have unusually high body temperature due to their regenerative cells constantly being produced in their body.”

Dazai didn’t need to say the rest as the two already knew this. The huge difference in their body temperature was what made them want to be near each other in the beginning. It was this difference that made it so comfortable when they hold one another because it’s only with each other that they can feel the warmth of another living being.

"Werebeast's blood cells carry high regenerative properties. A single cell holds twenty times more nutrient than a normal blood cell. That's why their blood will taste sweeter and richer than other species. When we drink from them, werebeast's blood will help heal our body. And due to the werebeast's regeneration power, their body will instantly restore any blood that was lost."

"Meaning as long as we have food, we're an all you can eat buffet for them." Chuuya chipped in from the sideline. "There are many more examples…"

"But werebeasts and vampires can't see that." Atsushi finished for Chuuya.

"When you're trained to hate and kill from a young age, you will lose the ability to think rationally. When Ryuunosuke first met Chuuya, the first thing he did was to attack him~" Dazai chuckled, causing Akutagawa to flinch as if something invisible had slapped him across the face.

"Really?!" Atsushi gawked at his lover. He then turned to Chuuya who seemed so fond of the memory that he started cackling.

"I beat him up pretty bad." Chuuya snickered. "I even offered some blood to let him recover, but he said he rather die than to drink from me. So, I broke all four of his limbs, dislocated his jaw and just poured my blood down his throat.

"E-eeeeh…?" Atsushi looked back to Akutagawa whose face was scrunched up in what looked like shame. He suddenly felt very sorry for his lover…

"That is the hate drilled into young werebeasts and vampires." Dazai explained. "Chuuya and I were stray dogs in our clan. No one bothered to educate us. Ironically it's thanks to this that we're able to find out the truth."

At the mention of stray dogs, Atsushi looked over to Dazai. He knew why his mentor was an outcast, but he knew nothing about Dazai.

"But why?" Atsushi asked, unable to understand how these two strongest species fell so easily. "How did werebeast and vampires ended up like this?"

"…It's not hard to guess." Dazai shrugged. "If werebeast and vampires are allies, then this world will long be under their rule. Someone decided to break them up and turn them against one another, and they did for centuries to come. That's all there is to it."

"But—"

"While we're on this topic, allow me to tell you something more interesting!" Dazai cut off the young weretiger. "Atsushi-kun, what do you think is the most important quality between mates?"

"Uh…love?"

"Atsushi-kun sure has a pure teenage girl's heart."

"No! That's not—"

"The most important quality is rivalry!"

"…Rivalry?" Atsushi was dumbfounded. He did not expect that kind of answer.

"Your answer may be true for human, but for us it's different. Love alone won't maintain a relationship past a century. Humans wouldn’t know that, as their lives are too short. Atsushi-kun, has any of the other species you've encountered performed a mating bond?"

"No…" Atsushi replied after some thought.

During his travels with Chuuya and Dazai, he has met quite a bit of other species. He met agents working for the government, and then those that hid within the underground world. When he thought over all of them he had met, none of those species had bonded with anyone else. His and his lover's mentors were the only one he knew that bonded.

"For now you may love someone, but that love will eventually turn into boredom with time. Because of this, there are rarely any species that perform mating bond. After all, once you've mated, it'll be for life. Depending on how long they live, it could be for centuries or millennia. Even back when vampires and werebeasts were still thriving, they only mate to reproduce. Pure, sappy love doesn't exist in a fantasy world like ours. Those only exist within human's imagination. For us, a hundred years could pass in a blink of an eye and before you know it, the love you once felt got reduced to nothing.

That's another reason why werebeasts and vampires are suitable to become mates. Because not only are they lovers, they are also rivals. No matter how compatible their bodies may be, their personalities will never match. There's always one thing or another that will make them butt head, but that's what helps them understand each other beyond what pure lovers are capable of. That's the important quality you'll need if you want to be together."

"That's what you meant by destined?" Atsushi sweatdropped.

While his and Akutagawa's relationships were way better than when they first met, they still argue over a lot of things. Sometimes over small things, sometimes over bigger things…oftentimes their arguments ended up with them going at each other's throat.

There were many times where Atsushi couldn't put up with Akutagawa, and he's certain the vampire felt the same way. Yet strangely, never once did Atsushi ever stop loving Akutagawa despite all the issues going between them.

He supposed it's the arguments and fight that made them closer and able to understand one another so well.

Without it…

Atsushi's face turned green as he shuddered at the thought of a kind, patient and cheerful Akutagawa.

"What is it?" Akutagawa asked when he noticed his lover bending over the sink.

"I think I threw up a little…Ouch!" Atsushi cried when Akutagawa kicked him in the back of his knees, causing him to knock his chin against the hard counter. "What was that for?!"

"I just felt irritated." The vampire replied as if the answer is obvious.

"You!" Atsushi pounced towards his mate in an attempt to get him back, but the vampire easily side-stepped him. Atsushi already knew that's what the vampire would do. He knew him too well after all. He kicked his leg out, to trip the vampire, but Akutagawa had predicted his moment and already summoned Rashoumon.

"You two! Take this outside!" Chuuya bellowed when Atsushi bumped into the cupboard, causing the glass and ceramic tablewares inside to rattle.

"With this, life won't ever get boring, don't you agree?" Dazai said softly as he watched the two youngsters going at one another. Atsushi's arms have transformed into his tiger parts now.

"Not ready huh?" Akutagawa's word flowed back into Chuuya's head as he looked at the two's interactions. Chuuya wanted to laugh. He knew exactly what these brats were thinking.

Bonding was a sacred mating ritual that binds two people's lives together.

With the bond in place, the mated couples can feel one another at a higher level of intimacy.

The feeling of bond isn't easy to explain. If Chuuya had to describe it, it's like seeing a spark of light for the first time within a world of darkness.

The light wasn't blindingly bright or overly hot. It was a soft mellow light that carried only a tiny bit of warmth. Despite how tiny it is, its presence was impossible to ignore. That speck of light was so fragile and precious that it just makes him want to carefully cradle it within his hands and protect it.

Once a bond was formed, there was no way to undo it.

A bond was a blessing for two people in love. However, if that couple had fallen out of love, then the bond will become a curse. Despite no longer loving each other, they were forced to always be aware of the other's presence. No matter where they go, they won't be able to shake off the yearning in their heart to be reunited with the ones they never wanted to see.

Loving someone else will become impossible, as no matter how hard they try, they won't be able to shake off the longing to seek out their bonded mate.

The only way to break the bonding was through death. However, if one was to die, then the other will always follow shortly after. After all, to suddenly lose that speck of light and return to the world of darkness is a frightening process. It was enough to drive the one left behind insane.

Chuuya has seen failed examples of bond couples before. All those examples led to only one result.

Death.

When Chuuya looked at Atsushi and Akutagawa, all he saw was two dumb brats desperately trying to protect one another.

They love each other, so they were afraid of tying each other down. They were afraid that somewhere in the future, their partner would get tired of their relationship and wanted to leave, but can't because of the bond.

They were afraid that one day the other will hate them for it.

Hell knew how many times Chuuya wondered over that question. Even someone as smart as Dazai dragged it on for years.

In the end, the answer was always simple.

Neither of them was able to imagine a life without one another. Until they decide to bond, they will always yearn for something more, something that will connect them closer. It was just a matter of who will take that first step.

These two brats were more than ready, but that was something for them to figure out.

Chuuya grinned as he thought back to that night when Dazai extended his hand to him. It was the moment he decided to take that hand that both of their fate intertwined.

"…I suppose you can sleep in the bedroom again. I'm feeling quite generous right now, you better be grateful."

Dazai looked down at Chuuya in surprise before stars shone within in his eyes.

"CHUUYA!"

"Just this once!" Chuuya warned as Dazai nodded frantically with the face of a puppy that finally got the treat he deserved.

Chuuya couldn't stop the smile blossoming on his face despite knowing that this may very well be a part of his manipulative mate's plan. No, Chuuya is certain this is part of Dazai's plan to climb back into his bed. Why else would he be talking these bullshit lover qualities for no reason?

He wasn't going to believe his mate was genuinely doing it to educate their students. If anything, watching the two fretted over a problem that was never a problem had always been an enjoyment to this bandage wasting mackerel.

The worst part was, Dazai must have expected that he would figure it out. If Dazai wanted to keep something a secret, it stays a secret. No matter how long Chuuya had known him for, he would never be able to figure it out. The bastard didn't bother hiding his intention because he knew, either way, Chuuya would give in.

Sometimes, Chuuya hated how he could understand his mate so well. Many times he wondered just how he got bonded to such a bastard, yet he couldn't find himself to regret this decision. If anything, it was the best decision he had ever made—setting aside how he wanted to strangle the leech three times a month.

Well…he supposed he can follow through with his manipulation once in a while. He'll just have to properly beat up the damn mackerel the next time he tries pulling something like this.

"What did you guys get?" Chuuya asked as he crossed the kitchen to open the fridge. He let out a small, delighted hum when he saw how it was stacked full of food.

"It's been a while since we had some traditional food," Dazai said as he leaned over the weretiger and started picking out some ingredients out of the fridge. Chuuya's mouth watered when he saw three large packs of sashimi.

"Chuuya."

"Wha—hmph?!" The last half of the redhead's words became muffled when a Dorayaki was shoved into his open mouth.

"Eat that for now. I'll have food ready soon." Dazai purred into the redhead's ear, causing colours to crawl up the weretiger's neck as he nibbled on the overly sweet treat.

In that distant, he heard the sound of crashing coming from upstairs, but Chuuya couldn't bother to care. He sat back down on the barstool, slowly nibbling on his treat as he watched his mate grabbed a knife. Dazai was in an extremely good mood as he flipped the dangerous weapon around his fingers before getting to work…all while singing that dumb suicide song he came up with decades ago.

"Hey, shitty Dazai."

Dazai turned to see a Cabernet Sauvignon glass flying towards him. The vampire caught the glass by the stem, elegantly twirling it around the air to prevent the beautiful crimson fluid inside from spilling out.

"Drink that for now." Chuuya threw the vampire's word back as he took another bite into the Dorayaki.

Dazai swirled the thick blood around in the glass before bringing it up to inhale the sweet aroma of his mate.

Smiling, Dazai set down the knife and walked over to the weretiger.

"Chuuya." He called the name of his mate tenderly.

Chuuya looked up, meeting the vampire's soft brown eyes before he picked up his glass of wine. Smiles graced both of their lips as they tapped the rim of their glass against the other, creating a crisp ringing sound.

"To stray dogs."

♥　♡　♥　♡　♥　♡　♥　♡　♥　♡　♥　♡　♥

Extra – "Osamu"

♥　♡　♥　♡　♥　♡　♥　♡　♥　♡　♥　♡　♥

"Chuuya-san."

"Hm?"

"I've been wondering for a while now…why don't you call Dazai-san by his given name?"

"Pfft!" Chuuya spat out the wine he was in the middle of swallowing. He coughed heavily, trying to get rid of the fluid that entered his lungs before looking over to his disciple.

"W-what's with that all the sudden?!" He spluttered.

Atsushi thought his mentor's face looked oddly red, but it was probably from the choking. He swiftly handed over some napkins which the older weretiger took.

"I was just curious…you and Dazai-san are together for so long but I've never heard you call Dazai-san by his given name."

"Who the hell would call that bastard's name?!" Chuuya snapped, bringing the wine glass back to his lips. Instead of slowly savoring the taste of the wine which was what he had been doing, he was gulping it down like water. "His name is Osamu! It's just lame! I'm surprised he even kept such a plain name for three hundred years!"

"Oh? I had no idea you felt that way, love." A dark voice suddenly whispered right next to his ear, breathing icy breath down the soft curve of his neck.

"PFFFFT!"

"Dazai-san!" Atsushi shouted in surprise at the appearance of the vampire standing behind the choking redhead. "Y-you were here?!"

"Yo, Atsushi-kun~" The vampire greeted merrily, but for some reason that smiling face brought chills down the young weretiger's spine. "If you’ll excuse us, Chuuya and I will have some adult talk.”

“Hey! Put me down, shitty Dazai!” Chuuya shouted as he was thrown over his mate’s shoulder. He trashed around, but the vampire didn’t loosen his hold as he went up the stairs and disappeared into their shared bedroom.

A long silence followed.

Atsushi stared at that closed door for a long, long time before only one thought came across his mind.

Tomorrow’s training with Chuuya will be hell.

•• ━━━━━ ••●•• ━━━━━ ••

◅ PART 1                               Main Page                              PART 3 ▻

•• ━━━━━ ••●•• ━━━━━ ••

[daughterofsinsloth]

I heard from a friend of mine that you are suggesting great fics of soukoku! Everyday I always go to AO3 and look for Dazai Osamu/Nakahara Chuuya tags to find interesting stories but recently I dont feel anymore of enthusiastic when I see updates, probably just stress from school. If its okay do you have any skk amazing fics that you like to recommend me or some you read?

hello anon-chan!! and hello to your friend too!than k you very much for your words! they makle m e really happy!

now! I kinda understand what you mean. maybe coz lately there are more angst fics? also school can be a major reason! i freak out a lot too! neh I will give you some fluuf and romantic  or action fics so you can realx and forget all about school okay?

lets see!

first some great writers, that you will definatly enjoy, are:

ReaperStygian 

setosdarkness

photography_tea

Memos

Witheryvine

Avi_pizzapopolis

AnonLearnsToWrite

Konoha79

sodenoshirayuki_23

izanyas

stargazerlilith

SoukokuParadise

hellosweetie17

gureshintrash

TheGreatCatsby

hybridempress

Lake_Toya

Kohaku69

okay now some am amazing fics that my heart always skip a beat reading them!

Mother by��WhisperingWinds99:

a really heart warming fic! Kouyou narrate skk life and we see her mother sight! well written and overwelming emotions . one shot

Movie Nights and Lazy Mornings by evie_maria:

a cute little one shot abouot skk weekend! pure fluff and calm feelings.

Seven days to show you my love by holdinglucy:

It takes Dazai seven days to prove Chuuya he’s still his partner in the things that matter. one shot and absolutely lovely! Im jealous of chuuya here! its nice seeing Dazai as a caring boyfriend who tries to find happiness and Chuuya deserve some too.

Chuuya’s Secret by Anonymous:

Chuuya’s behavior has become strange lately, but Dazai, with his insight, is certain he can figure it out. a hilarrious fic! one shot and a fluffy one! its mpreg too and its funny seeing Dazai as these dork dads!

Fire in the Night by ChubbyHippo:

I love this one. its one shot and AU. brothel!Chuuya and solder!Dazai fell in love under the bright moon and my hearet stopped!its lovely, romantic,bit sad but overwelm ing and leaves you full.

Five more minutes by counter_illumination:

from morning to night their typical day. cute and fluffy.crak makes an apperance too coz we are talking about Dazai.a really nice feeling in it. one shot

Shared Gravity by writingfromtheshadows, ZODIACHUUYA:

mind the writes too. multi-chptrs. the writers take turns with the chptrs leaving no hoe init and giving you the emotions open to see. AU!high school and reallyyyyy good.The first time they slept together, Dazai and Chuuya were little more than academic rivals thrown together in a haze of dancing and alcohol.Every time after that, well, they just seemed to be drawn to each other. its an awesome fic

A Hearts Desire by Kaokita :

AU and multi-chptrs.Chuuya works in a brothel when he meets Dazai, a journalist. Dazai thinks he can save Chuuya but Chuuya doesn’t need saving. The one who needs saving is the one who longs for a reason to keep living. Chuuya and Dazai end up saving each other. this two are like magnets and when they connect they are explode. Chuuya thinks that they are different but they are not really. A+++ for Oda being alive.

Feel My Love by eunrihae:

multi-chptrs, one going, mpreg.they are just in  love and noone thoought that Dazai was serious about Chuuya. but boy they are wrong. coz in the end of the day they will always be in love.

Five Times Dazai Didn’t Stay, and One Time He Did. by kidspawn02:

I honestly loe this one. its well written, well built and over welming. emotions bear for you to see and feel . it has smut b ut not graphic but its about Dazai and Chuuya don’t really know how to deal with sexual tension, and Chuuya doesn’t think it’s fair that he’s fallen in love and that Dazai leaves every time they share a bed. it hurts but the ending is perfect. one shot

Strangers and Painkillers by TheEnigmaticPhoenix:

thiiiiiiiis fic!!!!! best absolute perfect! fluff and light angst but its great! Chuuya has no right as a stranger to make assumptions that the man sitting in front of him is hurting more than he is, despite the huge bloody gash running down the length of Chuuya’s arm.So, in an attempt to become less of a stranger, Chuuya lets the man drag him to the hospital to get his arm treated, hoping that he’ll answer Chuuya’s questions.What Chuuya doesn’t realize is that it’s not that easy to get a certain Dazai Osamu to open up. (part of series)

(i believe) i think i said goodbye to my soul tonight by iskendaris:

this one has smut but I choose it for what it represent. the raw emotions and the writting just bring to light words and promises long buried and very much needed by afraid to be said. true emotions that no one wanted to say but they are not bad and its great how the writer portain them. Dazai OP is “This isn’t sex as much as its an interrogation. Whatever Chuuya wants from him, he doesn’t know why but he knows he can trust Chuuya not to fuck him up.Or rather, he knows why, but he doesn’t think about it too much about baseless trust issues, because therein lies hell and damnation.” and its nice seeing through him

Temporarily by prettypurplegirl08:

cutness overload and a very much needed happiness.multi-chptrs and you dont want it to end.In Dazai’s arms was a small child–Chuuya would guess he was probably around 3 or 4 years old–with, surprisingly, silver white hair staring at Chuuya with those wide purple-yellow mixture orbs of his. The little kid was only wearing an over-size white shirt–well it’s definitely oversized for the small kid. Chuuya fell silent as his gaze never left the child who was thumbsucking in Dazai’s arms, part of his brain trying to figure out where he had seen the kid and another part trying to fathom why Dazai had come to his apartment with him in the first place.//or Atsushi gets turned into a child and Chuuya and Dazai has tot ake care of him, Akutagawa is somehow involved?

I’ll Hold You Close, and Half of Us Closer by doubleblack :

multi-chptrs, on going, mpreg. a lovelly fic. a very needed fluff. “This is the baby.” The doctor smiled. “They look like a little spot right now since you’re not far along. And that is their very strong heartbeat.“Chuuya and Dazai smiled as they looked at the ultrasound of their baby. The doctor printed out the ultrasounds of their baby. She prescribed Chuuya prenatal vitamins, told him he was 10 weeks along, and that he would be due early December. Chuuya and Dazai were now on their way home, and Dazai held Chuuya’s hand as he was driving home.“If Mori finds out…”“He won’t.” Dazai stated. “And even if he did. I will not let anyone hurt you or our baby. Ever. I will destroy the whole Port Mafia before I ever let that happen.” its cuuuuuute. its a journey that i would love to see.

Lips by SilentSoukoku:

cut and unexpected! “My dearest Chuuya, do you even take care of your lips? Look at how cracked they are!” did you died yet? coz I did! one shot

Waste of Bandage’s by ChuuChan1994:

hilarious, cute, amazing! one shot. Chuuya is getting along better with the ADA, that still doesn’t mean he’s willing to put up with Dazai’s bullshit. Where Akutagawa was use to the sight, Atsushi was left gaping at the sight before him.

Just like we agreed by codenamecat:

I will say on thing : Yosano is a b adass  Goddnes. thats all. one shot and smut sorry but its funny and fluffy  too. “I’ve been giving you excuses to leave since the very beginning, why won’t you just do what we’re both waiting for and take your gross ass away from here?!”Dazai tilted his head, his expression suggesting that he suddenly forgot his mother tongue and didn’t understand a word of what Chuuya just said.“Who said that it’s what I want?”

bounded by fate by Nekito :

super interesting multi-chptrs, AU!!! kouyou never took chuuya in and chuuya never joins the mafia, thus never meeting dazai when they were kids; instead chuuya lives 22 years a normal life until he mets dazai; dazai’s connections with the port mafia however soon causes problems on going.

Without Gods, Without Guidance by dancing_dazai :

another super interesting AU but with Gods! niiice and very promising!Without gods, without guidance, By the window, a woman has passed on; the white sky is blind, the white wind is cold.-The Hour of Death, Chuuya NakaharaTwo lost souls find their way to Quindecim with no memories of who they are or how they got there, and they’re determined to get their lives back. No matter the cost. multi-chptrs and on going

centrifugal/centripetal by TopHat69 :

my absolute favorite! majestic, powerful, overwelming, lovelu, lovely fic! multi-shptrs, omegaverse, on going their story from the begging but they are true mates. problem is that its more than they can handle. it what they need but Chuuya is not good at this and Dazai is too afraid. Chuuya wants to learn, to reach Dazai and Dazai want to be free and filfull a promise.

Cover Up by Satquael:

one shot and beautiful! It wasn’t long after they’d first met that Dazai noticed the tattoo. It was on the back of his neck, a bunch of letters and numbers that didn’t make any real sense. A serial number, of sorts.Chuuya had tried to hide it, understandably. Under his clothes, and then makeup. These solutions didn’t really work. Not in the long term, anyway. Clothes shifted, and makeup rubbed off.Dazai had a better idea.

lastly, will be too bad of me to share my works? I think that you may mostly like this fic:

Can you sew my suit? : Akutagawa and Atsushi are getting married and who is a better person to be their best man, but Dazai Osamu? Unfortunally, all guests has to wear newly sew suits, but Dazai missed the deadline for the order!Now, eight days before the wedding, Akutagawa sends Dazai to his last resolt; his good friend’s tailor shop, Nakahara Chuuya.However, his Dazai’s suit will not be the only thing fixed.Ch1.: the prologueCh2.: the meetingCh3.: a bonus

aaaaaaaaaand thats some of my favorite and amazinf fics i LOVE! hope you like them and happy reading! tell me what you think okay?

be well! :)

have a nice day!!!

[mythril-mine]

001- Bungou Stray Dogs | 002- Soukoku | 003- Chuuya ( and Dazai? ) I want to know your answers to both | 004- BSD + Your choice

Ah, thank you for sending an ask, Haru~! Sorry it took me a couple days to answer everything!! I also got a little wordy where perhaps I had no business being on an ask meme, but I have So Many Feelings about Bungou Stray Dogs!! In fact, it’s under a cut because it got SO LONG. ;; So please pardon that~ Hopefully my rambling makes some modicum of sense. Here we go!!

001 | Bungou Stray Dogs

Favorite character: Chuuya! (And it’s going to show in these answers, so get ready!)

Least Favorite character: Le…mons?

5 Favorite ships (canon or non-canon): Soukoku, Shin-Soukoku, AtsuLucy, DazAtsu (sometimes), RamPoe (it was hard to narrow it down to five, I’m very much a multi-shipper for this fandom > ~

Character I find most attractive: ???? Chuuya is the most beautiful character second only to Kouyou, if I saw Kouyou in person I would tear up and be compelled to give her nine dollars.

Character I would marry: ………………? OdaSaku, I guess….?

Character I would be best friends with: I’d have a lot to bond with Poe and Alcott over hahah (I also want to be friends with Chuuya though I’m not even going to lie. I talk about this with friends a lot when the subject of ‘anime husband’ comes up. I don’t want to date Chuuya, I want to be his wingman and give him a high-five when things go well. I’d also want to be friends with Atsushi, Lucy, and Tanizaki~ and Gin!)

A random thought: I really want to talk about Fyodor but none of these questions really apply to him… ;; Second Random Thought: I think Kunikida/Atsushi would be surprisingly pure…?

An unpopular opinion: I’m not sure what’s considered ‘unpopular’ in this fandom anymore but I think Chuuya deserves some of the page time he’s started to get. ;; There’s a lot that can be done with his character with what’s been laid out so far, and if they’re choosing to make use of that as a reaction to his popularity, that’s okay! I’m sure they’ll do a good job with it! (Again is this unpopular? I don’t know because Chuuya seems to be slaughtering popularity polls lately, but I’ve seen him getting some flack on tumblr as well. Similarly I don’t think it’s so much that people dislike KunikiDazai so much as Chuuya is … disproportionately popular and the time people can contribute to fan works is limited.)

My canon OTP: There are no actual ‘canon’ pairings in BSD so far (I mean, if we don’t count Chuuya/Wine, Chuuya/His Hat, and Fitzgerald/Money, as you can see I take things Very Seriously). The ones I think are most heavily implied are Higuchi/Akutagawa (which I wouldn’t call my ‘canon OTP’ by any means because although I love both Higuchi and Akutagawa and want them to be happy he’s… not good for her currently), Mitchell/Hawthorne, and then Lucy —> Atsushi and Kyouka —> Atsushi. And… honestly Poe —> Rampo!? (While I highly doubt that was Asagiri’s intention, he has the same kind of fixation on Rampo that the girls do on Atsushi, pfft.) Of these RamPoe is clearly the Best but I’m very partial to AtsuLucy~

Non-canon OTP: soukokusoukokusoukokusoukokusoukokusoukoku

Most badass character: 560% Chuuya. (Do I need to explain why? I mean… look at him. /Jazz Hands)

Pairing I am not a fan of: Okay, I lied, there is one canon pairing and it’s Tanizaki/Naomi and I Am Not A Fan (I actually really like both of these characters in their own right and I’m even a fan of ships centered around devotion just please put them Very Ver Far Away from each other, they are siblings.)

Character I feel the writers screwed up (in one way or another): I always really hesitated to say ‘screw up’ with a series that’s ongoing — I think it’s unfair to the creators to call that when perhaps they’ve treated a character a certain way or put them in a certain scenario towards an end that would be compelling and make sense that we just haven’t seen yet. That said, of course I can’t pick just one, so here we go. 

Per Chuuya being my favorite character, I’m not 110% satisfied with how they’re handling him so far? I feel his character’s been shown to be a little inconsistent with regard to his abilities (both his actual Ability and also his faculties re: instincts, intelligence, and so on — even a bit of his personality when it gets boiled down to nothing but ‘Damn You Dazai!’ for comedic effect when he’s been hinted at being a much more complex person, as most people are). In part I think this also has to do with the fact that… Chuuya’s not… really a main character in anyway. They’re probably beginning to give him more of the spotlight simply because he’s such a fan-favorite, but — story wise, it doesn’t necessarily make sense to be their priority. (Even though /I/ want to see him treated consistently and given more on-screen depth and back story, and perhaps we’ll get that now that he’s featuring more!)

I think covering Dazai’s suicide-mania is important and I don’t even necessarily hate the light-hearted tone its given (I, myself, often cope with very self-deprecating humor), but I do dislike how often it’s treated completely flippantly. I could write a dissertation about why but… perhaps I shouldn’t have to.

Atsushi, Atsushi, Atsushi. Good lord. Not only is this kid screwed up from a physically and mentally absuve, isolated past, but the way he’s treated in the story, is just… He’s supposed to be our main character, and he has a lot of moments where he truly shines!! Atsushi is a wonderful shounen-type protag, especially in the climax of the Fitzgerald arc with how he gets through to Akutagawa, but damn is he inconsistent? Just when we think he’s gotten some character growth he goes right back to being a coward — and not that anybody can change overnight but the way it’s handled with him I feel is just… so stilted? Same for how development of his abilities is treated. We’re told it’s because of Fukuzawa’s ability, but that’s off screen and confusing for a reader. I… have extremely mixed feelings about how the chapter with his headmaster was handled, and what that means for his character and development as well. And — as much as I love sweet, pure, cinnamon roll Atsushi… I find myself thinking consistently “this scene would be more compelling for me if Dazai were actually the main character.” And I have very complicated feelings about Dazai, so that says something.

Favourite Friendship: I don’t think I can pick just one, actually…! Atsushi and Lucy’s friendship means a lot to me but actually I am HERE for Yosano and Rampo as well as Yosano with Kunikida. As much as I’m a Port Mafioso for life I do hope we see more of their interactions in the future. Also, nobody in the PM are really…. ‘friends,’ that I can tell? Though I want to see more Black Lizard interactions and also them interacting with Chuuya. And also Kouyou interacting with Chuuya! (Atsushi and Akutagwa are NOT friends but I’d like to see that…)

Character I want to adopt or be adopted by: I’m older than almost all of these characters so I guess I want to adopt Akutagawa and give him actual love and support because goddamn buddy you had it rough with Dazai as your mentor… ;w; (I’d be okay being adopted by Fukuzawa too, though!!)

002 | Soukoku

When or if I started shipping it. Hmm… definitely by Chapter 31 but I was curious about it when Chuuya first showed up, I think. I was ready for KunikiDazai, who are currently partners, so the whole ‘old partners’ thing piqued my interest. Chuuya comes off so much at first as ‘jilted, abandoned lover’ that I immediately want to know why or at least explore it in fandom.

My thoughts: THIS QUESTION IS SO BROAD, I could write a whole dissertation about this! How it’s great and interesting and also terrible and vague, how do I do the CliffsNotes version… we know so so so little about what’s implied to have been a terrifying and powerful partnership between Dazai and Chuuya. There’s just so much /potential/ there for how and why they came to know each other so well, for how Chuuya came to trust Dazai with his life despite knowing what a terrible prankster and liar his ex-partner is and how they two came to hate each other and bicker (or were they always this way?), and there’s of course the question of what lies in store for them in the future that makes the idea of the two of them together so fascinating to me. It’s an interesting ship for me especially because prior to BSD I’d be extremely hard-pressed to come up with a “hate ship” that I actually enjoyed. I tend to be more drawn to ships that showcase a typical ‘healthy’ relationship or positive emotions, signs of devotion, and so on — life’s angsty enough as it is, I use fandom and media to get away from that. But somehow that potential and both the humor and sadness of how Dazai and Chuuya interact and think of each other, and if they could reconcile (or not!), has been so compelling for me as a fan who likes to analyze and read into things too deeply. Soukoku is honestly just a really fun sandbox!

What makes me happy about them: Canonically, the humor in how they bicker and how frankly badass they are when they work together. In fandom, all the potential I mentioned earlier for them to reconcile, and also the idea of stolen warm moments and shenanigans together training and growing up in the Mafia, pre-Dark Era.

What makes me sad about them: How on earth did you guys hurt each other so bad!? What did you do?

Things done in fanfic that annoys me: Hmm… it’s hard for me to think of anything? I haven’t read anything in a while but when I first got into BSD it kind of drove me crazy that the entire fandom just collectively… made Chuuya French? Or Half-French. It’s not even a head-canon I’d be against, necessarily, I just didn’t get it, even with the actual author being something of a Francophile. (I’d be more interested to see that detail worked into his character.)

Things I look for in fanfic: Adhering to how they are in canon, hate and all, but analyzing in what ways they navigate around that to both be beneficial to one another and eventually even enjoy each other’s company. And the hurt/comfort thing. Also, Chuuya being intelligent in his own right! I mentioned earlier that the manga is kind of inconstant about this but I like the idea that Chuuya is not just brawn and I like when fic explores that in how he handles Dazai. Also I approve strongly of people covering Dazai being TERRIBLE and how he makes up for that — or doesn’t, and why.

My kinks: what. ….them both being… happy… together??????

Who I’d be comfortable them ending up with, if not each other: I think Dazai needs LESS VIOLENCE in his life but if Kunikida can set that aspect aside I think they’d be good together. (I also think Atsushi would be good for Dazai but it needs to be Just So… imbalance in power in a relationship that you sometimes see with mentors and mentees can not always be good for those involved /coughDaAkucough). For Chuuya I’m … not really sure. I think TaChuu is really cute and I’m on the fence about KouChuu? I see Kouyou as more an elder-sister or even Mother figure to Chuuya. based on how Mori was to Dazai since That One Chapter Cover is all we have to go on for Chuuya’s past and I am HERE for that type of interaction 560% and not really romantic-OTP about it. But to be fair she’s only four years his senior and they’d be quite the Power Couple, literally.

My happily ever after for them: They reconcile and talk out whatever it was they did to hurt each other, and recognize that they’re both hecked up but maybe they can be slightly less hecked up together if they try to understand one another instead of just insta-bickering. (They still bicker constantly, of course, but it’s a little more good natured, now.) Also, Chuuya joins Dazai at the ADA, where Fukuzawa can help him have better control of his power. His newfound lack of dependence on Dazai in that regard is one less thing for him to feel resentful over and can help him move past it. (That said I don’t think in any way this would be End Game for BSD and if you want to know my feelings on THAT I’d be happy to oblige — this is just what I think would be a sweet ‘happily ever after’ from where they’ve been.)

003 | Give me a character & I will tell you

Chuuya

How I feel about this character: I think about Chuuya every day and get emotional/angry about him almost as often, I Love Nakahara Chuuya a Lot. (Compared to Dazai’s analysis down below this probably seems really shallow but it’s more like I love Chuuya unconditionally? There’s nothing about his character I dislike.)

All the people I ship romantically with this character: Dazai. And, to much much lesser degrees: Tachihara. I’m not opposed to ChuuAku in any way I just… can’t think on my own what they can do for each other? and haven’t seen much fan work around it. I’m also here for ChuuAtsu but they’ve … never interacted, so.

My non-romantic OTP for this character: KouChuu!! I love Kouyou and I love the potential for family-style shenanigans with Chuuya!

My unpopular opinion about this character: Well, I guess I mentioned it above — I get why people don’t understand why he’s popular. /I/ don’t understand why he’s popular and I love him to hell and back, but — I think he deserves it. He’s spunky, sassy, badass as heck, incredibly well-dressed, appealing and compelling. And he has so much potential.

One thing I wish would happen / had happened with this character in canon: I want Chuuya’s backstory so badly!

My het ship: I can’t think of one?

My fem/slash ship: Soukoku

My OTP: Still Soukoku!?

My OT3: I could get behind Chuuya/Dazai/Atsushi or Chuuya/Dazai/Akutagawa or honestly all four.

My cross over ship: I don’t really have any but I played with a Tatara from K recently and their interaction was cute…

My kink: ??????????? Chuuya… smiling and…. not getting into a drunken stupor over Dazai????

A head cannon fact: Chuuya is Always Ready to Fight but he actually also likes ‘softer’ things like music and poetry quite well (they pair well with a nice glass of wine, after all). When not on the clock he dabbles in poetry and writing his own song lyrics (that, of course, would come out something like Darkness My Sorrow) and will practice singing them softly to himself, but although he’s not the nervous type he is way too embarrassed for anyone to know about this. It doesn’t fit his Big Bad Mafia image. Dazai is the only one who knows about this even a little bit, as some of their strategies are based on poems he either showed him when they were younger or things they co-wrote together while bored. (Another head-canon, because I’m weak – Chuuya knows his way around make-up, thanks to Kouyou, and because he’s all about looking Great regardless of whether it’s something ‘traditionally’ girly like that flowery hat he saw in the window in BSD Wan! He doesn’t wear makeup much though because he doesn’t think it fits his Big Bad Mafia image either, nor does he think he needs it.)  

My Gender Bend: Again I’m not entirely sure what this question means in this context? Like… is it how I think he’d look if he identified/was assigned another gender? Because I think he’d look… pretty much the same… appearance doesn’t signify gender in most ways… If it’s like, gender bending head canons from what we’re given in the series though I like the nb/transboy head canon for Chuuya, I think that’s a fair analysis in a lot of ways and valuable to explore in fandom/fiction.

Dazai

How I feel about this character: One time @annalaflame made the horrible mistake while we were in the parking lot at the end of the night, about to go our separate ways, of asking me “gin, do you actually like Dazai?” and she got to spend the next forty-five minutes in the front seat of my car as I sat there and explained how I felt about him.

The thing with Dazai is… he’s an asshole. In so many ways. I often compare him to Izaya from Durarara!! — which Haru, I realize that won’t mean much to you, but Izaya is like … he’s irredeemable to me? As a villain I love to hate him, because he’s horrible and manipulative and always seems to get his way but it’s to no end other than his character alignment being Chaotic Asshole.  Dazai, on the other hand…

Dazai is … such a multifaceted character. He’s horrible to people (and animals!) and manipulative and always one step ahead and is honestly, kind of a sociopath. He has no qualms at the idea of horrible things happening to his enemies be it by his hand or that of another, and he doesn’t seem to mind how his awful actions can affect those closest to him and at times even finds it humorous. Notice I didn’t say he doesn’t care — because I think he does, and this is where Dazai is redeemable to me.

I think, for someone so hyper-intelligent, scheming, calculating — Dazai was, and perhaps still is, a little lost. We see this in his lack of self-preservation and suicide mania, both in Dark Era and present, but also in the front he puts on, his bravado. He was something of a loose canon in Dark Era, very dangerous, and OdaSaku (from what I understand, having read summaries and watched the anime but not read the book itself) acted as his conscious and, with his death, became a guiding light leading Dazai towards being a better person by the work he — through a veil of On Brand complaints — now willingly does with the Armed Detective Agency.

Additionally, after the Guild arc, Hirotsu asks Dazai how long he’d been planning for Shin-Soukoku to happen, and Dazai answers from the Very Moment he met Atsushi. How can that be, if Dazai wasn’t acutely aware of exactly how he mis-treated Akutagawa as his now abandoned mentee, if that wasn’t something rather always on his mind? Dazai may not ‘care’ about people in the sense of always wanting to be helpful to them especially if he doesn’t get anything out of it — and in some ways this may be a product of his (lack of) upbringing and environment. But I do think he cares in the sense of perhaps, even retroactively, wanting to do ‘right’ now — and he’s still figuring that out for himself and how he does that. And that’s one of the things I find so compelling about a character that rubbed me such the wrong way at first — he may not be doing a good job, but Dazai is trying, in his own way. This is reinforced by how he treats Atsushi during our protag’s lowest moments of self-loathing and uncertainty, how he speaks to Kyouka when she’s given up, how he confronts Fyodor and defies him even in the face of their maniacally evil similarities. He’s a man that’s been terrible all his life, but is trying to be perhaps not good, but better. [Insert gif of Mal Reynolds from Firefly saying “well, I’m alright.”]

Anyway that got super long because I could go on about him for days, but basically I think Dazai is incredibly fascinating and easily one of the most compelling characters in the series, if you can get past the humor given to his suicide mania. But — even that is something that’s relatable to a number of people, which makes his character that near always has the upper hand in a situation very interesting to watch as he too grows and learns (even if he can be annoying too~).

All the people I ship romantically with this character: Chuuya! Kunikida, Atsushi (sometimes), OdaZai (sometimes)

My non-romantic OTP for this character: DaAku!! (T_T) I want to see them work stuff out. DazAtsu, too, always. Atsushi’s been a good influence on him. Also, the Buraiha trio was so good. (Also… maybe it’s just that I want Yosano to get more development as I keep mentioning her, but… I want to see her interact with Dazai more?)

My unpopular opinion about this character: I think his suicide-mania is important to consider and explore (I want to clarify though that I do hate how flippantly the series treats it, which is probably actually a popular opinion.)

One thing I wish would happen / had happened with this character in canon: I Really Really Really want the ADA to comment on afore-mentioned suicide-mania in a way that’s actually positive!? Like give this guy a support group, god. Yes, he drives everyone away and they don’t really owe it to him, but come on…

My het ship: I don’t think I really have anyone for Dazai either, actually…

My fem/slash ship: Soukoku?

My OTP: Still Soukoku, to the surprise of absolutely no one.

My OT3: Buraiha trio~

My cross over ship: Jury’s out on this, Dazai’s a hard one.

My kink: ???????????????????????? Actually my one fantasy of fantasies for Dazai was that I wanted to SEE HIM GET TAKEN DOWN A PEG because he was too ‘always right’ but then the manga happened and I DIDN’T WANT TO SEE HIM FALL LIKE THAT…. (Yeah hi I don’t really have ‘kinks’ really just… things I’d derive satisfaction out of seeing in canon RIP)

A head cannon fact: Actually this is sort of more soukoku-related than anything, but when they were kids and Dazai was still trying to figure out what exactly he was missing in order to look for it in order to be interested in continuing to shuffle along this mortal coil, he kind of voiced some of that personal angst to Chuuya while they were hanging out all partnered-up and Chuuya just … didn’t get it. It was not really in Chuuya’s wheelhouse to even consider wanting to die and he didn’t exactly… mock Dazai about it but brushed it off rather rudely without trying to understand it because from his perspective it was ridiculous. Cue ‘bandage-freak’ and ‘suicide maniac!’ insults. And Dazai was, understandably, hurt and insulted. But of course, being who he is he couldn’t show that and laughed it off with bravado as well, but it caused him to sink lower at the time and while he doesn’t really care because his capacity to feel things like that is abnormal, it was the major thing that really sparked some of the visceral resentment for Chuuya he seems to have in canon.

My gender bend: Same confusion on the question as with Chuuya. That said, Emil’s Single Dad AU has SLAYED me and I like their interpretation of trans!Dazai. I’ve also thought about the possibility of perhaps nb Dazai in general, in part because of his personal pronoun? But I don’t have the knowledge of Japanese culture in regard to non-binary genders to really say if that’s a fair analysis, since ‘watashi’ can also just be used when speaking slightly more formally.

004 | BSD + Your Choice

BSD + Fandom of my choice, hmm? I don’t know if these are really ‘crossover OTPs’ so much as just Imagine, If You Will, Come With Me On this Journey…. Chris and Kunikida having to deal with Rayflo and Dazai.