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Dazai and Ango sat in the Librarian’s office waiting for Odasaku to return.
It had been a few months since the Chief Librarian had first announced to the authors at the library that they would undergo an awakening process to stabilize their corporeal forms.
Dazai had been one of the first to achieve the transformation. The Buraiha knew it was only a matter of time before the rest of them also unlocked a new form, but the sudden announcement that Odasaku was the next author to be selected had come as a surprise.
“Aaaah it’s taking so long!” Dazai whined, “What if Odasaku ran into some trouble? We should go check!”
Ango sat leaning against the giant cat cushion the librarian had recently set up in their office and stared up at the ceiling. He’d been hearing some variant of the same complaint from the redhead every ten minutes or so, and it wasn’t making the time go by any faster.
“Knowing him he’s probably taking his sweet time on a stroll down the Osaka streets he wrote about in his novels.” Ango replied evenly. “He said he’d be back, so let’s just trust in him.”
Dazai frowned. “You don’t seem worried at all! It’s Odasaku, he’ll be near breakdown and still be smiling trying to pass it off as just a scratch… but all alone!”
Ango pushed up his glasses and fought back a sigh. He half wished Dan were here to help with keeping Dazai from doing anything stupid while they wait, but alas Dan was on kitchen duty this week so he was busy with dinner prep. That meant the job of pushing aside his own concerns in favor of babysitting their neediest Buraiha bro fell to him. (But Ango didn’t begrudge Dazai for it too much. After all, he knew the pain of what Dazai was fearing better than Dazai did himself.)
Ango turned to look at Dazai with a crooked smile and opened his arms wide. However, instead of Dazai diving into his arms and bawling like he’d expected, the Setting Sun author simply stared at him with a look of disgust.
“What the fuck Ango!! This is no time to hoe around.”
“………………”
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Odasaku stood, victorious in his battle against the boss taint.
Around him was a starry expanse of words that expanded around him as far as the eye could see. He watched as it slowly shifted and grew lighter, seemingly giving way to the dawn.
He’d done it.
No, that’s not quite right. He hadn’t won as a result of his own efforts alone. It was the journey through his past memories and remembering the words he’d been given from those he held dear that had given him the strength to stand back up. To set aside his own hubris, and accept that he wanted to try his best to live to ensure the people he cares about won't cry over him again. That is how he was able to deliver the final blow.
As a new ring slowly descended from the sky into his hands and he placed it on his finger to complete the process, he silently made a promise to himself. The first thing he’d do when he got back to the library is thank his teacher, his fellow Osakan author, and his fellow Buraiha for taking care of him all this time and show them he’d learned he needed to take care of himself.
….. Or maybe second, as his stomach had startled growling.
“Man I really worked up an appetite. Gotta hurry back ta get some of Dan-kun’s curry.”
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Evening had turned into night, which was now slowly turning to daybreak.
Try as he might, Dazai couldn’t help but keep worrying about Odasaku. He remembered the fake visions he’d seen of his fellow authors saying cruel things during his journey to acquire his ring. What if the same thing had happened to Odasaku?!
Dazai had stubbornly wanted to stay right there until Odasaku came back to them. But after Ango pointed out that they’d be of no help to Odasaku if they were tired and hungry, he’d finally relented and let Ango drag him to the dining hall.
As they reached the entrance, he saw the subject of his thoughts approaching from the other side of the hallway.
“Heya guys~ it’s me. Whaddaya think?” Odasaku said, twirling around to show off his new outfit with a wink.
Dazai stopped and stared at the sight. It wasn’t as though the brunet’s appearance had changed that much. His clothes had been upgraded, though his hair remained the same length and still in the same familiar braid. But most of all….. the smile on his lips felt like the most genuine one Dazai remembered seeing on his friend in a long time.
Dazai turned to look at Ango and when Ango turned to look back at him, he could tell they were both thinking the same thing. They both ran to their bro and threw their arms around him in a hug.
“Welcome home Odasaku!”
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“Um Ango, Dazai-kun… This is real nice but…” Odasaku was very happy to see his bros again, don’t get him wrong! But he was also very hungry. And trying to walk the remaining distance to the kitchen with two people clinging to him was proving to be a challenging task…!
“Odasaku, you grew from what you saw there too didn’t you?” Dazai whispered softly as he kissed Odasaku’s neck. “You should let us see what other things about you changed tonight.”
Ango, who was nuzzling the top of Odasaku’s head, chuckled. “C’mon Dazai, give him a break. He’s gotta be tired too.”
Truth be told, Odasaku was exhausted. The only two things on his mind were food and sleep. Normally, he’d hide all that behind a smile and push on anyway, come what may. And he was ready to do just that again, but he then remembered the promise he’d made to himself earlier and stopped. He meant what he said when he said he’d start valuing his health, so it wouldn’t be right not to try to keep it.
“Kekeke that’s Ango-kun fer ya. Yer always real sharp at noticin’ how people are feelin’. Yeah, I sure could use some rest right now. And some curry.”
Ango and Dazai both look at Odasaku for a long moment. Odasaku worried his friends would think his new attitude wasn’t befitting of a member of the Buraiha, but those thoughts quickly disappeared as they both held him tighter.
They continued standing there quietly enjoying the warmth of their group hug, until the silence was broken by Odasaku’s stomach growling (again). “Guys…. Seriously, I’m starvin’ here…..”