Work Text:
None of them could pinpoint the moment the switch happened.
In fact, Sigma had lost his understanding of the situation quite a while ago. To be fair, ever since he was put together with Dazai, he could barely keep up with what was going on anymore. Seriously, what wouldn't he give to be able to go back to his peaceful life in his beloved casino.
But he had an inkling as to the fact that his simple dreams won't be coming true anytime soon.
Backtracking a little bit, the last thing Sigma was conscious of was the time when he walked into this room behind Dazai. They'd been sure that Fyodor and the gravity manipulator were exterminated when they were made to drown a while ago. Dazai had just been talking about his plans for the near future, when everything suddenly went haywire.
One moment everything was fine, and the next, all the exits of the room closed upon them, and the speakers above blared to life, amplifying the voice of the very man they had tried to... Kill, for the lack of a better word. It turned out Fyodor was alive after all, considering he was running his mouth off about how Dazai was so stupid and how his partnership with his rival was just so shallow.
At the very least, that meant that Nakahara Chuuya was alive too. Sigma wasn't sure what kind of news that was supposed to be, considering the infamous gravity manipulator was probably the biggest threat to any plans they made, right after Fyodor himself. Sigma wasn't sure if his survival was good news, and the look on Dazai's face confused him even further.
Dazai stared up at the speakers with a tight-lipped smirk, his expression betraying something akin to knowing, and predictability. That expression lasted for mere seconds, and Sigma had a feeling that he'd have missed it if he'd looked that way even a second later. Dazai's expression then changed to something more taken aback, bewildered, uncomprehending.
It only got worse as Fyodor kept speaking. Dazai's eyes glinted at the insinuation that his bond with his partner was anything but deeply-rooted, built over a foundation of trust and loyalty to one another for the past seven years. The former mafioso was still capable of producing a murderous glare, and even if briefly, Sigma could believe so. Believe that Dazai could kill without any distinction if it was about the gravity manipulator.
Sigma didn't really understand it. Humans were such intricate, complicated creatures. It was really too difficult to understand what they were thinking at any given time. And such predicaments were worse when it came to certified geniuses like Dazai and Fyodor. And as for the gravity manipulator, who even knew what the situation was with that guy?
Well, nevertheless, the situation just worsened further, as Fyodor decided that Dazai required a taste of his own medicine, and unleashed torrents of water upon them. Into the locked room, with no escape out. Dazai and Sigma had just been standing there, and the latter could sense his doom making way towards him at a rather rapid pace.
The water had been almost up to their waists, when the unthinkable happened. The lights in the room flickered for the briefest of seconds, and it was really too easy to lose bearings instantly. The next thing Sigma knew, he had opened up his eyes to the gravity of their present situation.
The switch.
Similarly, up in the control room, even Fyodor had no idea what had suddenly happened. He could've sworn that he had just been talking shit about those two idiots from the Port Mafia, on his way to drown the half of the duo who was now dubbed as traitor. And while his plan was being put into action, his best pawn in this game was standing right next to him, watching the show through his darkened eyes.
Fyodor wasn't really sure but he could somewhat feel hostility towards him from the gravity manipulator, all while he stood right by his side. The overwhelming sense of spite and annoyance had intensified when Fyodor had started talking about the bond that his beloved pawn shared with his enemy.
It was merely a minor change in circumstances, but something that warranted a looking into anyway. Nakahara Chuuya was supposed to be mindless after having been bitten by a vampire. He should have no conscience of his own, and should only do as ordered. If that was the really the case, what was this sheer hostility that Fyodor detected? Such strong vehemence, it really caused him to shiver.
But before he could look further into his doubts and construct theories of his own, everything suddenly started being really weird. The lights in the control room went out for a second, but they flickered back on almost immediately. Dostoevsky blinked just once, yet somehow, in that brief moment, the advantage he held upon his enemies had changed immediately.
A peculiar switch had taken place, and he had now idea how.
Down in the room, Sigma's eyes fixated upon a newcomer. An all too familiar silhouette, a short man who donned a dark jacket and a hat, his fangs bared and his eyes stone cold as they stared right back at him. A quick glance around confirmed that Dazai was in fact no longer in that room.
Yet strangely enough, right in his position, where he had been standing, now stood his longtime rival and partner. The infamous gravity manipulator, Nakahara Chuuya stood there in all of his glory, staring right at Sigma.
Sigma yelled out in a loud whisper, "Nakahara-kun?! What are you-! Oh my god, I'm going to die."
For a few seconds, nothing happened. Then slowly, Chuuya relaxed his posture. Shoulders sagging, his eyes closed briefly before opening again. And this time, they appeared to be completely normal. A vibrant blue that Sigma wasn't all too familiar with, but if Dazai had still been here, he would confirm that these were the eyes he'd grown up looking into. Somehow, the fangs had retreated as well.
The mafioso removed his hands from his pockets before cracking his knuckles. He rolled his eyes at the other person in the room, "Oh relax, will you? You're not going to die."
Sigma himself could not explain why he was so calm, "But weren't you a vampire? Isn't it your job to take me out?"
Chuuya huffed indignantly, "Who's a vampire, oi! I'm completely myself. And there's no way I could kill you. That shitty Dazai would whine and complain about how I foiled his plans if I did that. He's very annoying, you know?"
Sigma blinked, "Ah, I'm aware. But wait-! How did you... Why are you... Uhm. What happened here?"
A sly smile spread on the other's face, as he raised a gloved hand to carefully point at the speaker, "Wait for them."
Back in the control room, expectedly enough, Fyodor opened his eyes to his enemy standing right next to him, in place of his weapon. He didn't even have to look around to notice that the gravity manipulator wasn't here anymore. He was gone, as if he'd really disappeared into thin air or something.
In his place, however, stood the ever annoying Dazai Osamu. First things first, the detective reached out to push up the lever that controlled water flow in the prisons. It was pretty much guaranteed that Chuuya and Sigma won't drown anymore, but Dazai figured it wouldn't hurt to check anyway.
He pressed down on the microphone button before speaking into it, "Yo, Chuuya. Did the water stop?"
A familiar, annoyed voice rung out throughout the control room, "Yeah. Do something about draining it out though, will you? I'd rather not be drenched again."
Dazai pouted, "Hey, I already apologized for that! But fine~"
He turned to his enemy, "Dos-kun, do you know the control to drain out the water in that room?"
Fyodor peered at the control board before pointing towards a button, "Try that, maybe? I didn't really look into how to drain the water. The whole purpose was to drown you, no?"
Dazai nodded in understanding as he tried a few recommended buttons before speaking into the mic again, "Did it work?"
This time, it was Sigma who responded, "Ah. Yes? Thank you?"
Dazai cheerfully spoke, "No worries!"
He then turned back to the other contestant in this little game, "Well then. Hi, Dos-kun~! Are you surprised to see me? Are you, are you?"
He didn't stop to wait for an answer, however. He turned back to the control board immediately, "Oh, wait. I better keep the mic and speaker on for that room. I can feel Chuuya hissing."
Turning on the communications, he spoke again, "Right, now it's all ready for the big reveal. So, Fyodor-kun? Aren't you pleasantly surprised at this turn of events?"
Fyodor shrugged, "Nothing is pleasant about it, is it? So? How'd you pull it off?"
Dazai gave it some thought, "Hm, how do I put this? I had an ability user help me! I'm sure you're aware there are lots of ability users hidden away in every nook and cranny of this prison. I just had a previous arrangement made with one of them."
Sigma's voiced thoughts flickered through the microphone, "Another ability user?"
Dazai snapped his fingers, "Precisely, Sigma-kun!"
Fyodor questioned seriously, "And what does this ability user do? Who are they?"
Dazai shook his head, "Of course, I can't give away their identity now, can I? I promised to try my best to protect them, you see. They are a very minor ability user, after all. As for their ability..."
This time, it was Chuuya's voice that rung out through the room. An exasperated one at that, "Oh come on, shitty Dazai. Do you really have to say it? It's already embarrassing enough."
Fyodor glanced at the mic, "I take it that Chuuya-kun is no longer under the vampire ability?"
Dazai waved his hands, "Oh that? He was never a vampire in the first place. Ne Chuuya?"
The gravity manipulator replied in affirmation, "Oh yeah. It's easy to look affected though. Corruption was just half activated, you see. Since my hat was still on. Corruption doesn't activate completely unless the hat is off. Don't you get any ideas though, it's impossible to remove that hat off my person."
Dazai nodded sagely, "Exactly, exactly. Only Chuuya can do that. And me, sometimes."
Fyodor hummed, "I see. So? What's this ability you just spoke of?"
Dazai clapped his hands together, "Right! It's very cute actually, don't listen to Chuuya. Basically, this person's ability swaps places of two people. Like physically."
Fyodor sneered, "Sounds awfully convenient, doesn't it?"
The other genius shook his head immediately, "Of course not. It can't just swap any two people. Let me elaborate. The ability physically swaps two people who love each other the most. And I mean, seriously love each other the most. Two people could be married but still not get swapped. One could prioritize their kid more, or their own parents. Something like that. The conditions for the switch is very strict and narrow."
For a few seconds, nobody said anything. Then, Dostoevsky chuckled, "Chuuya-kun is right. It is so embarrassing."
Chuuya complained, "I know, right! Disgusting!"
Strangely enough, his voice sounded really too close this time. As if he was in the same room, and not speaking through the microphone. It didn't take too long for Dazai to properly have the upper hand this time. For one, Chuuya was actually in the control room. Being able to control gravity and all, of course he was faster than most.
While Dazai was busy explaining the ability, he'd taken the time to make his way to the control room. Within seconds, Fyodor was bound and forced down on a chair. Chuuya used his gravity on the bindings to ensnare him, and the other end of the bindings was handed over to Dazai, hence successfully rendering Fyodor unable to activate his ever so mysterious ability.
Fyodor frowned, "This is so rude. And to think Sigma-kun would take their side too?"
Naturally, Sigma had followed the mafioso here, and now stood at the door of the control room. He ignored his acquaintance, choosing to turn to Double Black instead, "So, by that logic, Dazai-kun. Doesn't that mean you and Chuuya have to be in love for such an ability to work? Wasn't it a really risky gamble? We can never be sure of people's feelings."
Dazai mulled that over for a few seconds before speaking, "I get what you're saying, but this was the foolproof way to ensure success, ne? Chuuya is my dog, after all. There's no way he doesn't love me~"
Chuuya huffed, "Who loves you, oi. You're just a pesky, annoying fish that I can never seem to get rid of."
Dazai laughed genuinely as he poked his rival in the cheeks, "Don't be like that, Slug. The fact that the ability worked on us just proves my point."
The mafioso sighed, "I hate you so much."
Dazai grinned, "But you love me."
"Ugh. Fine. If you really must embarrass me so, yes I do."
Sigma muttered in concern, "But I thought you guys were rivals, and ex-partners."
Chuuya corrected him at once, "Rivals and partners. Still are."
The poor casino owner frowned in confusion, "How does that work?"
Dazai fondly looked at his partner, "This little chibi is married to me."
Sigma yelped, "In the legal sense?!"
Chuuya snorted, "Obviously. Curse my shitty luck."
The former mafioso wrapped an arm around his rival's waist, "You'll never grow if you keep lying, you know."
Naturally, his voice sounded too fond and in love for literally everyone else in the room. Fyodor complained, "I understand we're enemies and all, but must I really be forced to sit through this disgusting display? Can we skip over this part and move on?"
Dazai turned his darkened eyes over to him, "Not just yet. What was that you said before? Something about our bond being too shallow despite being partners for seven years? I'll have you know that-"
Chuuya cut him off by squishing his face with a single hand, "He obviously doesn't know what he's talking about. Don't let it bother you."
His partner complained, "But Chuuya! He was so rude about it!"
Fyodor sighed in annoyance, "I wasn't aware of your, such personal relations. Slight oversight on my part."
Chuuya shrugged, "Personally, I think it was rather obvious."
Still clinging onto him, his rival nodded, "Right? These people must be blind as to not notice it, ne Chuuya?"
The gravity manipulator chuckled, arms still wrapped around the other, "Whatever you say, Mackerel."
Between all these terribly confusing people, Sigma let out an exasperated groan, "Seriously, how would it be obvious! Aren't you two misunderstanding your relationship here?!"
Chuuya looked up at his partner, "Are we?"
Dazai tilted his head in confusion, "I don't think we are?"
Chuuya nodded, "Exactly. Anyway, shall we get going then? We have to hunt down Nikolai and get the antidote, and then get to the airport. Ugh, why is there so much to do?"
Dazai patted him gently, "It'll be over soon."
Chuuya complained as the group made their way out of the control room, "I wanna go home. And get a change of clothes. This is ridiculous."
His partner just yawned lazily, "Don't worry so much. It'll be over soon."
-
Omake
Sometime when the infamous Double Black finally found themselves alone;
"Oi, shitty Dazai. Are you alright?"
"Hm? I'm just fine. Chuuya worries too much."
"Because you do such questionable things all the time! Can you not make things easy for me just once!"
"Ehh, but what's the fun in that?"
"Uh, I don't know; peace and quiet? Serenity? The chance to binge watch a show and get ramen?"
"Well, you have a point. But we can do that anytime!"
"You're fucking stupid."
"Yes, yes. I missed Chuuya too~"
"You insufferable little-"