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It was a cold and loud night in Yokohama when Double Black was once again sent on a mission. It must be their fourth or fifth after Chuuya had joined the port mafia.
"Don't do that!", Dazai yelled over the field, holding tight onto their gifted enemy to make sure he won't use his ability again.
Their situation was bad but nothing Double Black couldn't deal with.
Their enemies had an ability fighter. “Fire Control” the gift got called. But Dazai already calculated the outcome and had him down in less than 2 minutes after the fight started.
His skin was marked with burns between the ripped bandages, revealing bright pink scars.
The pain tingled through his whole body but after being in Mori's hands for so long, the executive knew how to lock his emotions behind walls for a certain time.
But his injuries weren't the important thing back then.
Chuuya was. The newbie had rushed into the main fight to get their informant out there, but something- only for the redhead (because Dazai had every situation calculated in his mind)- unpredictable happened.
The guy rose a gun from under his suit, aimed at the gravity empowered and shot, which blew Chuuya off track and the ginger had to reorient himself.
Their informant was a mole.
Not being one for using his brain in fights, Chuuya acted on instincts and attacked the man they were supposed to be protecting.
Dazai knew the mission was the most important. If mole or not, their task was to protect the man and get the informations in return.
The punishment would be fatal for getting the informant killed. Dazai was aware of that, Chuuya wasn't.
"Slug! Stop it! That's not our mission!" Dazai tried to stop his partner again, without much success. He didn't even try to run to Chuuya, knowing that he would come too late.
Gritting his teeth, the brunette watched how the ginger's knife sliced through their informant's throat- silencing him forever.
Groaning annoyed, Dazai continued fighting the rest of their enemies who weren't attacking Chuuya.
After the fight was over, Dazai turned to his partner and yelled: "Are you totally out of your mind, you fucking Pipsqueak?!"
"Huuuh?!! You are one to talk, dipshit! You weren't the one under attack!" Chuuya shouted back while wiping his hands dry from the blood on his pants.
"The mission comes first! We had to protect him.", Dazai's voice calmed down slightly, he himself felt like fire was brooding angrily in his chest. They made a mistake. Mistakes get punished. Punished by Mori.
Dazai would have shuddered if Chuuya hadn't been around. He hated that man.
"Whatever. It already happened, so stop crying around, you suicidal maniac." Chuuya retorted, waving his hand casually in the air while turning his back to Dazai like disobeying a mission had no consequences.
Chuuya wasn't aware, the executive told himself and followed his partner, not responding to the insult. The little slug was new, this had been their fourth mission together.
—————
Back in the headquarters Double Black reported the mission to their boss, Mori Ougai.
With a wide smile Mori stood up from the desk he sat behind the whole time, coming to the two boys in dangerously slow strides.
Dazai bit the inside of his cheek. Never before had that fake grin been directed at him. But he was well aware of what would happen next. He stood by often enough when Mori had punished his subordinates.
"Whose fault was it?" The boss spoke in a soft tone, leaned down slightly to get a little level with the two teenagers.
Chuuya grinned sheepishly and examined the big room, not seeing and not caring about the danger in front of him. Dazai on the other hand looked directly back into Mori's eyes.
"It was me.", he told their boss in a monotonous tone, not once looking away.
As fast as his neck would allow, Chuuya jerked his head around and glared at his partner. Why would that mackerel cover him??
"Nuuh Dazai, beginning to lie to me? What a bad habit.", Mori got closer to the brunette, laid a finger under the teenager's chin and tilted his head up a little.
Chuuya shuddered at the intimacy between Mori and Dazai. How was the brunette not freaking out?
The first time while they stood in this room, Dazai averted his eyes from Mori. "No. I ordered Chuuya to kill the informant after he attacked us and exposed himself being a mole."
Of course the mafia boss saw through the lie, too familiar with Dazai's behavior.
"You can leave now, Chuuya-kun.", spoke Mori as he straightened up again and smiled gently in the newbie's direction.
The shock was still visible in Chuuya's eyes, it hadn't worn off at all. Why did Dazai cover him? Obviously Mori didn't have good intentions in mind.
"But-" Chuuya was cut off shortly.
"Don't be impolite. I just offered you the rest of the day off." Even if Mori's smile was still on his lips, Chuuya could hear from his voice that he didn't tolerate any contradiction.
"Yes, Boss.", the shorter mumbled, turned around and went out of the large room.
Again did the question cross his mind: Why had Dazai covered him?
And while Chuuya went outside and to his apartment, Dazai was met with Mori's cruel punishment.
—————
Not seeing Dazai or hearing from that suicidal maniac in three days after their failed mission, Chuuya felt uneasy. Something was odd but never would the ginger admit this uneasy feeling was worry.
Annoyed with himself for caring and for getting to Dazai's apartment, Chuuya knocked on the door, which was unexpectedly unlocked.
The ginger knew that Dazai wasn't home often from stories Hirotsu had told him. Therefore it was to expect that Mori sent Dazai on a solo-mission as punishment. If home or not, Chuuya would always lock his door. But Dazai wasn’t Chuuya.
Without worrying that he was practically breaking into Dazai's apartment, Chuuya stepped inside and looked around.
The apartment wasn't big and there wasn't much furniture either. The kitchen was fully equipped, but in the living room was only a sofa with a table, and there wasn't even a television. Overall it was far too dusty to suspect anyone would live there.
"Oi, Shitty Dazai! You home?", Chuuya called, opening a door in the hallway which led him into the bathroom.
Wrinkling his nose at the stinging smell of blood, Chuuya was sure the brunette was home.
The former white bathroom tiles were covered in crusty blood, a dispelled first-aid kit laid on the bathtub's edge, unwrapped bloody bandages were thrown into the tub. But no Dazai in sight.
This was too much blood for Chuuya's liking but why did he even care?
It annoyed the ginger to no end that he felt the urge to care about that shitty executive.
Picking up the remaining things from the first-aid kit, Chuuya made his way to the remaining room he wasn't in yet, hoping the bastard would be there.
In fact, someone was in the room, laying under a pile of comforters.
"Oi Dazai, you dipshit could have at least answered me that you are here.", Chuuya grumbled, going over to the blanket mess.
And even though the person was obviously breathing, they didn't reacted.
The uneasy feeling in Chuuya's stomach grew constantly.
Fucking suicidal maniac. Had he tried to kill himself again? But why would he chose such a weird way?
Frustrated by the unanswered questions Chuuya pulled the blanket away, revealing a (seemingly) sleeping Dazai.
"For real asshole?!!", Chuuya screamed but immediately stopped when he saw the unbandaged skin of his partner.
Swallowing thickly, Chuuya allowed himself to turn away and gag slightly.
He knew Dazai was suicidal but the executive himself told Chuuya how much he hated pain. And these gashes were obviously not fight marks- more likely from torture or self-harm.
After he regained control, Chuuya turned back to Dazai, climbed onto the bed and leaned over the brunette. He put his shaking fingers on his partner's neck, checking for the pulse even though he just saw Dazai breathing.
A little relaxed at the slow but steady pulse under his fingertips, Chuuya parted away again.
He should wake Dazai before he touches his injuries.
"Asshole, Dazai, come on, wake up." He shook the bigger one's body while calling his name.
He needed a few more attempts but finally the mafia executive stirred and cracked his eyes open.
While attempting to fake a smile, the brunette tried to sit up but fell back with a painful groan.
"Yeah no, you ain't going anyway.", Chuuya mumbled, worry washing over him at his partner's cry of pain.
Dazai never showed any sign of pain. He got shot on one of their few missions and played it off with a great smile.
"Hey Chibi", Dazai greeted his partner with a raspy voice and weak grin. His eyes looked even more empty than usually, it scared Chuuya.
"Hey dipshit. You know that you are bleeding out?", he tried to tease the other.
"Mhhm. 's fine." Dazai agreed.
"Hell no. Not on my watch at least, asshole." Chuuya grabbed his partner's hand and latter winced at the contact and looked away.
Immediately the ginger looked down at their hands, seeing Dazai's left pinky, ring and middle finger cleanly sewed back at his hand, dried blood covering the pale skin around them.
It looked weird. The fingers were bruised and in such a weird position, Chuuya was certain they were broken. If he looked close enough he could still see the straight cut at the brunette’s fingers base. Would Dazai be able to use them again?
"Dazai...how did that happened??" Panicking, Chuuya grabbed one of the clean bandages he found around the first-aid kit before he carefully wrapped Dazai's fingers up. The latter whimpering constantly through the process.
Having just started patching up his partner, he decided to take care of the cuts on his arms as well. He lightly wiped away the crusted blood with a wet washcloth before wrapping bandages around the arm and hand. Tight enough that the bandage wouldn't come loose on their own, but light enough not to constrict Dazai's arm.
After he was finished, he helped his partner to get out of the bloody clothes. It only revealed more scars, fresh burns (Chuuya assumed their latest enemy to be the cause) and bruises.
Dazai felt uncomfortable with being that much exposed to Chuuya. But the ginger minded them no second thought.
“Shall I wrap your body up too?” The softness in his parter’s voice confused Dazai but also made him feel a bit safer. The brunette shook his head and decided to trust his partner as much as he trusted him with stopping Corruption.
Ignoring the small amount of clothes in the executive’s closet, Chuuya decided for a comfortable looking hoodie and sweatpants for Dazai. Carrying the thing back to the bed, the ginger helped his partner to get dressed into the clean clothes.
Subsequently Chuuya covered him with the blanket before he stood up again.
“Have you eaten in the last days?” The ginger asked, only half aware of Dazai’s eating habits.
“I’m not hungry.” No one knew why Dazai wasn’t just lying in that moment. Maybe he really trusted Chuuya with his caretaking.
The ginger already wanted to argue but when he saw how tired the younger one looked like, he thought it wouldn’t hurt to shove the issue away for the next morning.
With a small smile, Chuuya sat down neatly on the bed to be at Dazai's side but not to make the other uncomfortable if he would have loathed touch in that moment.
"Again. How did this happened? A solo-mission?", Chuuya broke their comfortable silence, finally wanting answers to his questions.
Dazai shook his head.
Chuuya thought about other possibilities, annoyed at his hurting head. Thinking was Dazai's thing, not his.
"Have you done it?" Again a head shake.
"Torture?" A hesitant nod.
Chuuya frowned and thought about who could have done that.
When he realised, his eyes widened in shock.
"Mori??", the ginger yelled.
Dazai winced at the mention of the devil's name but denying it was pointless. And fighting against Chuuya while being in this weakened state was no good for the brunette anyway. So he nodded.
Chuuya grumbled. "And the cuts? I doubt this was Mori’s work."
Dazai sighed. Opposing himself to Chuuya? How annoying. "It was me."
"But I thought you hate pain?" It was an understatement to say Chuuya was confused. How the heck can someone read that suicidal maniac? It's impossible.
"I do...", the executive sighed again, "It's sort of a punishment. Not that your short brain would get this."
At Dazai's insult Chuuya breathed relieved. He seemed to get better.
"You know, Dazai... I don't think you should punish yourself when Mori just did that.", Chuuya uttered, running his fingers over the bandages.
Shocked at the softness and care in his partner's voice, Dazai looked at Chuuya. "What...?"
The shorter huffed and looked away, intertwining his fingers with Dazai's, careful with the stitches.
"I can't change that you feel that weird obsession with death but when you feel like you deserve a punishment… first don't cover others! And second...I'm here. You can talk to me, you know? I know we have different perspectives at life but I could at least distract you from these thoughts? Just as I do it right now"
"Wow, I didn't think you would be such a sappy and passionate person, Shorty.", Dazai grinned, squeezing Chuuya's hand gentle as confirmation that he accepted the offer.
"Shut up, shitty Dazai!", the shorter barked back but smiled at the little gesture.
"All bark no bite, doggy"
"I'm not your dog!"
"You are!"
"Fuck off!"
"Never~"
Their bickering continued for a while until they ended up cuddling and sleeping in Dazai's bed.