Chapter Text
“Hey, Atsushi-Kun!”
The silver-haired college student jerks his head around, looking at Naomi, “Ah, Yes Naomi-Chan?”
“Kunikida called and asked if Dazai was here, apparently he disappeared so I offered someone go help find him... do you mind?” She looked at him tilting her head.
”Oh, sure Naomi, no problem.” He smiled at her and set his pen down on the desk standing up, “What case are they on?”
”Looking for a tiger apparently, some people saw it a few days back, called it ‘man-eating’.” Naomi hummed.
Atsushi almost flinched, ‘Ah, I must not have been in a secure enough place when I let Byakko take full control for that night..’ he thought to himself.
Atsushi brushed his hair out of his face along with the thoughts of his ability, "Well, I guess I'll head out and look for him then." Atsushi had never been particularly close to any of the actual detectives of the agency besides Ranpos, though he had many times had nice conversations with Kenji or Tanizaki, Dazai was a bit too... much for him. So neither of the two really had any proper conversations before. He grabbed his bag and swung it over his shoulder. Saying goodbye to Naomi and leaving the agency.
"Where would he even be..." He thought aloud before beginning his walk down the streets, humming softly to himself, "He's always been kind of random, hasn't he?" He sighed, "I'd have no idea where to look, he's barely ever even at the office and when he is he's slacking off."
Atsushi sighed and hurried down the streets a bit faster looking for anyplace Dazai might be.
Eventually, after a while of searching, he sighed and sat down on the grass next to the river, "I have no clue where he would be..." He sighed and sat there for a few minutes, ignoring the passing people until he heard a splashing in the water.
Atsushi looked up to see a pair of legs, "What the... is that Dazai..?!" He stood up, taking off his shoes and jumping into the water.
After a few minutes, Atsushi pulled his senior out of the water, laying him down on the ground. He breathed somewhat heavily as he rested for a few seconds himself. "What..." He looked at Dazai just in time to see him wake up, sitting straight up.
Dazai looked at Atsushi for a few moments as the intern tried to even out his breathing. "You're that intern boy who avoids everyone," Dazai spoke and Atsushi looked up at him, "Yeah Nakajima-Kun, you only ever talk to the twins or Kenji. Everyone else you avoid like the plague."
"I-I don't avoid them!" He eventually found the courage to speak to him after a few seconds.
"You don't?"
"No!" He frowns and looks to the side, "I just don't see a reason to talk to anyone, and those three are the only people that talk to me."
"Ohhhh, So you try to avoid everyone." Dazai nodded as if that was what Atushi meant, which, in fact, it wasn't.
"N-No!" Atsushi found interest in his sleeve cuff, "What were you doing in the river, anyways..."
"Trying to die, wasn't that obvious?" Dazai blinked.
"Die?! Like- Like suicide?!" Atsushi looked shocked.
"Yeah!" Dazai smiled, "We've only just started talking and you get me so well, Nakajima-Kun!"
Atsushi stared for a few seconds, frowning, he took a step forward and Dazai's smile faltered.
"Nakajima-Kun?" He looked confused but then the confusion cleared up and was replaced by surprise when Atsushi wraps his arms around him.
"You don't have to act happy, you have people at the agency" Atsushi spoke softly.
Dazai took a few seconds, "So do you, Atsushi-Kun."
"What?" Atsushi pulled away and looked at Dazai.
"Well come on, you work with us, we've tried to talk with you, you just keep on working, it's worse than-"
"Dazai! There you are you bandage wasting machine!!!" A voice from across the river screamed.
"-Kunikida." Dazai turned and yelled back his hello, "Kunikida!! Just in time! Atsushi-Kun and I were about to get some food!!"
Atsushi looked up at Dazai then looked at Kunikida across the river, looking at the ground finally, not sure what to say.
"Yeah right! You probably forced the boy into your antics!" Kunikida glared.
Atsushi backed up a bit, "Well since he's found you, I'll be getting back to work..." he turned around but was pulled back by an arm wrapping around his shoulders and dragging him to Dazai's chest.
"Kunikidaaaa, Atsushi saved my life, can't we get some food before he goes back to ignoring us all first?" He whined, still comically shouting across the river to him.
"No Dazai!"
Dazai looked at him and just started walking, arm still around his subordinate.
~~
How did they end up here?
Atsushi had no clue.
He sat across from the two partners, as he nervously nibbled at his food while they talked about the beam in the restaurant.
He heard Kunikida's pencil snap and saw him shaking Dazai with his hands around his neck.
Atsushi stood up and reached across the table, grabbing Kunikida's arm, "Let go."
Kunikida looked at him for a moment, shock both on Dazai and Kunikida's faces at their junior's tone. Kunikida let go and they both went back to sitting normally, beginning a different conversation about their lack of leads.
"May I ask what you have on the case?" The softness and hesitance had returned to Atsushi's voice, the two looked at him. "I'm uh... studying to be a detective, so... I don't know, maybe I could help, since you two aren't... actually trained..." He laughed nervously.
Dazai hums and crosses his arms setting them on the table, and resting his head on them, "We don't have much, basically though a white tiger was seen around the city, late at night a few days ago, apparently since it hasn't shown up since they'd like us to handle the investigation, they interviewed the people who have seen it, they all use words like viscous or man-eating for it."
There's a growl in the back of Atsushi's mind from Byakko. 'I know, I know, you would never harm a human, I understand, I know you only want to protect me.' Atsushi's thoughts directed at Byakko calmed the growl and let a soft purr take its place before Byakko fell silent again as to let Atsushi think.
”Hm... Well... You have gone to the places it was spotted itself right? Has it caused any destruction? Or are there any pictures or security cams of it?” He spoke carefully thinking of how an investigation would go.
”It doesn’t seem to have made any damage nor has it been caught on camera”
’Good Byakko.’
A mix between a growl and a purr came from the depths of his mind and he almost laughed.
“Have you considered it might be an ability? Perhaps one like Junichiro’s? Or something hallucinogenic?” Atsushi spoke, “perhaps if you go back and look for a common thread you could find out if it was.”
“That’s my Atsushi-Kun~”
Atsushi looked at Dazai weirdly.
“Well then!! Kunikida why don’t you continue going over and clarifying the witnesses' statement’s for any person The might’ve all seen and Atsushi and I will look for a physical implication at the scenes.” Dazai grinned, standing up after heading files and a slip of paper over to Kunikida.
”Wha- me?!” Atsushi stood too.
"Yep!" He grinned at Atsushi, grabbing him and walking out, leaving Kunikida to pay for the bill, "Later Kunikida-Kun!!"
~
It was nightfall when Atsushi and Dazai walked into the warehouse.
"So the tiger was seen here as well, Dazai-San?" Atsushi walked into the warehouse, slightly confused as to how Byakko would get in here before hearing a growl saying that she had not in fact been here before, leaving him on edge.
"No actually Atsushi."
"W-What?"
"No witnesses had claimed to see the man-eating tiger near here." He looked at the other, "I actually just wanted to ask you a question."
"In a warehouse...?" He stepped back for a bit but was frozen at the older man sternly saying his full name.
"Atsushi-Kun, remind me why you're an intern again?" He walked up to him.
"I-I want to become a detective and Fukuzawa gave me an internship here and a chance to shadow Ranpo-San... But ah, Ranpo-San doesn't like dealing with me much so I don't really do much but go over case files for him and other regular paperwork given to interns..." That was partially true Atsushi learned to control Byakko and ran away from his orphanage when he was sixteen and stumbled across Fukuzawa when he reached Yokohama. The man treated him with kindness and helped him get back on his feet. About a month later he ended up living with his... well with Ranpo, Atsushi was never sure what Ranpo and Fukuzawa's relationship was, though it seemed to be a father/son one to him. Fukuzawa and Ranpo helped him, and even taught him things you would learn in school that he hadn't experienced since he was locked in the orphanage. They helped him and when he turned seventeen they told him what their work was... they told him about abilities. Atsushi had decided that day he wanted to work with them, and so when he turned eighteen he immediately said he wanted to go to college and become a detective to work with them.
Fukuzawa had taken a bit to think but agreed, he paid for college for Atsushi (Though Atsushi felt bad for that he had grown to learn since he was taken in that Fukuzawa was stubborn about those things and would not let Atsushi pay him back), and gave him a job as an intern and told Ranpo to let him shadow him, Which Ranpo whined about how it wouldn't teach Atsushi since he didn't have an ability but reluctantly agreed.
And in the five months, Atsushi had been there he hadn't regretted his choice, despite Ranpo mainly sending him on errands for snacks or just asking him to try and solve cases he already had solved earlier, rather than letting him go on the cases to watch him work, despite the fact that the detective agency was certainly not actually going about their cases the right way, despite the fact that he only gets to watch them use their abilities from afar.
Despite the fact that he knows he'll probably be apprehended as a criminal for being what has been called as the man-eating tiger in just a few meer minutes, Atsushi doesn't regret his choice.
Atsushi found people who were like him, even if their abilities were different, even if he had never admitted to having one, he'd found people like him.
So if he gets arrested by these people, then he can accept it.
"Interesting, so another question Atsushi-Kun, why do you think the tiger is a hallucination ability... and not a shifting ability." Dazai stared him down.
That being said. That didn't mean Atsushi would let himself be taken in without a fight, seeing as he wasn't a criminal for letting Byakko run free in what he thought was an enclosed area.
"Because... there's no physical damage or pictures... So it could be some mass hallucination..." He unfroze and took a few steps back to keep from making contact with the nullifier.
"Oh? But from my research, there is physical damage, Atsushi-Kun."
He froze again, "What?"
An angry growl came from the depths of his mind from the false accusation.
"Indeed, you should know of it, Atsushi Nakajima. See the damage I'm talking about was from an orphanage a few years ago done by a tiger of with a distinctly similar description as the one seen around here."
The angry growl dimmed to a whimper, an apology, as Byakko and Atsushi both realize Dazai is referring to the night Atsushi ran away after shifting.
Atsushi shook his head, "I... I don't know what you're referring too, Dazai-san..."
"You don't? But a certain Atsushi Nakajima was reported missing from that very same orphanage the night it happened." Atsushi flinched, when did he find this out?
Byakko started to growl again, the clouds outside moving away from their place in front of the moon.
Atsushi starred at Dazai and looked up at the moon, "You know Dazai-San..."
"Eh?" Dazai looked confused a little from the change in posture and demeanor.
"I never intended to hurt anyone." He closed his eyes as his pupils changed to slits, "Byakko!" His voice got louder as rings circled him and he shifted into a tiger, his thoughts merging with the tiger that resides in the back of his mind.
Paws hit the ground and a full-grown white tiger stood in front of Dazai, "Ah, a pleasure to see your other self, Atsushi-Kun!" He smiled as the tiger jumped at him, Dazai stepping to the side as the tiger jumped onto the wall and boxes around the room, wary of Dazai and his ability, he sighed, "Ah, so you're still human enough to know you can't actually make contact with me? Eh?"
The beast growled loudly before running towards the exit.
"Kunikida, Now!!"
A net went over the tiger, limiting it's moments just long enough for Dazai to smoothly walk up and pet its fur as his ability kicked in and Atsushi turned back to his human form.
Kunikida jumped down from the roof of the warehouse and stood in the doorway, looking at Dazai who was now standing up with his hands in his pockets, staring down at the passed-out intern.
"He's the tiger?" He looked down at his junior.
"He is."
"And so you decided to have me call in unnecessary backup for our own worker?" Kunikida glared as three sets of footsteps could be heard and he held up a note telling him to secure the perimeter of the warehouse where they currently were. "Why were you so fucking cryptid?!"
"That note seems pretty straight forward to me."
"Ehhhh? Why is my protege in a net, Dazai?" The three sets of footsteps came to a stop.
Kenji crouched next to Atsushi, untangling him from the nets, Yosano brushing her hair behind her ear, and Ranpo crossed his arms pouting a bit.
"Atsushi-San was the tiger, Dazai-San?" Kenji looked up at the bandaged man who nodded in reply, "But I thought he didn't have an ability...?"
"He lied." Ranpo stared at the boy he had as a roommate, almost a year and a half had passed since Atsushi learned about Fukuzawa and him working at the agency, almost a year and a half since they had taught him about abilities, and he said nothing suspicious about it, he had not once said anything that would imply he knew anything about them prior. Ranpo had never used his Ultra Deduction on him for that very reason, Atsushi acted how any normal kid would after finding that out.
Then it hit him, Atsushi wasn't normal, Ranpo had spent several nights hearing Atsushi's one-sided conversations from nightmares. Atsushi was a homeless kid Fukuzawa found that ran away from an orphanage he wouldn't talk about, that isn't normal, he isn't normal.
But he had the directors trust. Atsushi knew that, Ranpo knew that, Fukuzawa had made himself very clear of that when Atsushi was introduced to Ranpo. 'Don't use your deduction on him.' Ranpo never forgot those words that the president told him the day Atsushi moved in with him. That was trust. That was Fukuzawa saying to trust him. Did Fukuzawa know back then that the silver-haired boy had an ability? Or had it been something else?
"What should we do?" Yosano asked.
"We'll have become a detective like us."
"Eh?!" Kunikida looked at Dazai who smiled.
"Atsushi Nakajima!! Wake up, boy!" Dazai yelled out.
Atsushi twitched and took a few moments, sitting up as he registers what happened, hearing the soft whimper like purr from Byakko in his mind, telling him that she had failed to help him get away from the danger.
He looked around and winced when he saw Ranpo standing there with a small frown, he finally looked up at Dazai.
"How long have you been hiding that secret, kid?" Dazai held out his hand to help him up, which Atsushi decidedly did not take based on the growl from Byakko when he was about to.
Atsushi stood up and Kenji hovered to help him.
"I... Don't know what to say in this situation... But..." He looked at Ranpo.
"But?" Dazai offered him to continue.
"I never hurt anyone... not on purpose at least..." He kept looking at Ranpo, "I only ever use it to run away from danger..."
"Or me, apparently." Dazai grinned.
Atsushi looked at Dazai, "Byakko classified you as dangerous... I'm sorry Dazai-San." He bowed, "If you wish to take me in you can, but I believe I have broken no laws." He spoke honestly.
Dazai laughed, "Ranpo-San, you said it yourself he's your Protege, I'm against it but would you like to take him in?" he looked at Ranpo.
Ranpo stayed silent and took out his glasses, he looked them over before sighing and putting them away again.
"No, We'll deal with this tomorrow, Everyone should head home and I'll deal with Atsushi for tonight." He spoke reminding Atsushi that he still had to go home with the brother-like figure.
The others nodded, and eventually all but Ranpo, Dazai, and Atsushi remained.
"Atsushi-Kun?" Dazai looked at him.
"Y-Yes Dazai-San?!" He looked at him.
"You aren't a criminal. Stop acting like you've lost all you have." Dazai stared at him and it gave Atsushi the feeling that this wasn't just talking about what had happened with his ability, but also linked back to what Dazai said at the river.
'You don't have to act happy, you have people at the agency'
'So do you, Atsushi-Kun.'
Atsushi nodded a little as Dazai left, he nervously turned to Ranpo.
"Atsushi."
"Yes, Ranpo-San??" He looked at him fiddling with the tail of his belt.
"Come on, let's go home." Ranpo's tone was a mystery, but Atsushi was pretty sure he was screwed.