Chapter Text
Chuuya didn't know what to make of these people.
Apparently they were kids like him and Atsushi.
But they didn't have the powers he and Atsushi had.
He held Atsushi tight as Yuan explained how Suribachi City came to be.
Atsushi held back tighter, and fell asleep quickly.
Chuuya didn't join him in the realm of sleep, because he knew what would happen.
Floating objects, himself and Atsushi would hit the ceiling, possibly go through it if there was enough force put into it.
Atsushi snuggled into him, curling up into Chuuya's lap like he was meant to be there.
Yuan left the room, and Chuuya closed his eyes, pulling his little brother close.
They didn't wake until nine the next morning.
~~~~~~~~~~
A year had passed, and Shirase had started calling their group of kids the Sheep.
Shirase had come up with it, claiming "we're society's stray sheep that it never claimed! So we'll show them how to fear one!"
Chuuya thought it odd, but what did he know?
The other eight year old had pouted when apparently Chuuya didn't react how he wanted, and stormed off.
Oh well.
Atsushi was more important anyway. He was incessantly curious, and walking off to explore new things.
It always made Chuuya worry, because while Atsushi was really really smart for a four year old, Chuuya wanted his little brother in sight always. Suribachi City was dangerous, with pipes running everywhere and water pouring out of them. Gross, brown water that wasn't safe for drinking.
Atsushi would probably try though, if he was thirsty enough.
The dragon soul-mark on his hand tingled again, and he huffed, giving it a look. "I know, I know. He runs off without warning all the time."
Shiny, silver hair caught his eye. Chuuya snapped his head up and called on For the Tainted Sorrow.
"Atsushi!"
The little boy turned around, and grinned at him. "Nii-nii!"
Chuuya would deny how much it warmed his heart to hear himself be called by that name. But that could wait. Right now, he had a little brother to scold.
"Atsushi, you're not supposed to walk away or go someplace without someone, especially not me!" He scolded, quickly grabbing his little brother's hand.
Atsushi pouted up at him.
"But nii-nii! Shiny!" Atsushi pointed to the roofs of the houses. "Shiny is pretty!"
"Yes, shiny is pretty. But you can't run off." Chuuya sighed, letting go of Atsushi's hand to lean down and pick him up. "Honestly, it's a good thing there's no roof above Suribachi City, we'd have to pry you offa it 'cause of the reflection."
Atsushi huffed, kicking his legs. "Down! Nii-nii, Atsu wants down!"
"Oh? Atsushi wants to float?"
Atsushi shrieked with laughter as Chuuya let go, his legs peddling and arms flailing.
"Why didn't you say so in the first place, Atsushi?"
Atsushi started floating upside down. "Nii-nii! Nii-nii, Atsu wants down!"
"Oh? You wanna go higher?" Chuuya teased, picturing Atsushi as lighter, and Atsushi's head floated to be as high as Chuuya's.
Atsushi kicked his little feet as Chuuya snatched his hand again and started dragging him along, like an Atsushi balloon.
"Nii-nii, is Atsu in trouble?"
Chuuya looked at his little brother in confusion. "No? Not that I know. Why? Did you do something?"
"Nii-nii floats Atsu when Atsu is bad."
Had he? Chuuya hadn't noticed.
But Atsushi had.
So Chuuya needed to fix this.
"No, ya ain't in trouble. I just don't wanna let ya go." Chuuya sighed. "I don't like you not being around. It means I can't protect you."
"But Atsu wants to protect nii-nii too!" Atsushi's upside down pout was adorable.
Chuuya laughed, righting Atsushi and pulling him into a hug. "Silly. I'm the big brother. It's my job to protect you."
Atsushi latched onto him. "Nii-nii'll see! Atsu'll protect nii-nii!"
Chuuya sighed happily, squeezing his brother tight.
And he vowed to himself that Atsushi will never have to act on that statement.
~~~~~~~~~~
Chuuya groaned as he stretched his legs out.
Shirase had been ordering Chuuya around a lot, telling him to protect the borders from intruders.
But who were the intruders? And who were the people trying to survive? Nine year old Chuuya didn't know. He just wanted to sleep with Atsushi.
The stars were starting to come out.
The sky was turning a nice, dark blue.
"Onii! Onii!"
Chuuya peered over the edge of the building.
Atsushi stood there, bold as brass.
"Ain'tcha supposed to be asleep, ragamuffin?" Chuuya drawled, hopping down.
"Can't sleep, Onii! You aren't there!" Atsushi protested, latching onto Chuuya's side.
"Sorry, ragamuffin." Chuuya sighed, ruffling Atsushi's hair. "I gotta patrol though. I'm the fastest."
Atsushi nuzzled into his hand, a happy sigh escaping him. "Sleepy. Come back to base. Wanna sleep."
Chuuya groaned. He cast his eyes around. "I still have another place to patrol."
Atsushi gripped onto him tighter. "No."
Chuuya listed to the side, taking his brother with him. "Otouto, I kinda have to."
"Nuh uh."
Chuuya grimaced and called on his ability.
Atsushi shrieked as he floated upwards again.
"Sorry kiddo. Two more hours."
Chuuya leapt back onto the roofs, and released his hold on his brother.
The sad eyes of his brother haunted him for the rest of the two hours.
~~~~~~~~~~
Chuuya slammed into the guy, using his gift to make sure he wouldn't get back up.
Breathing heavily for a moment, he made doubly sure the guy wouldn't get up.
Then he snapped around.
"Atsushi!"
He raced through the dilapidated building.
"Atsushi!"
He strained his hearing, his eyes, his nose.
"Atsushi!"
Where is his brother?!
Thump
Chuuya slammed through the floor above him to get to the source of the noise.
There, Atsushi lay, bound and gagged. He had used his feet to slam on the ground and create the noise.
Chuuya raced forward, reaching for his brother.
Atsushi shook his head, tossing it to the side.
Chuuya turned around, seeing the last member of this shitty group who took his little brother.
Chuuya didn't remember how the fight went.
All he remembered was the guy plummeting through the remaining stories of the building.
Chuuya turned around, heaving, finally getting to his brother's side.
He ripped the gag off of him first, then went for the arms.
"Are you okay? Are you hurt?"
Atsushi's breath was hitching.
"Atsushi, did they hurt you? Tell me if they hurt you!"
"N-no. Just- jus-"
Atsushi burst out in tears, wailing up a storm.
Chuuya scooped his brother up, holding his brother tight. He rocked him back and forth, back and forth.
"It's okay, it's okay, it's okay." He chanted. "I'm here, I'm here, it's okay, I'm here, I'm here, Atsushi."
Atsushi's cries finally petered out, Chuuya's hoodie soaked with snot and tears.
Chuuya stood, holding his little brother tight to him. For the Tainted Sorrow answered his call as usual, no matter what the being in his head tried to say.
He jumped from building to building, refusing to let his brother go.
"What did they want from you?"
Atsushi buried his face into Chuuya's shoulder. "You. They wanted to fight you. To make you surrender."
Chuuya scoffed, buoyed by the fact that his brother is safe and his ten year old pride.
"Fat load of good it did 'em, eh?" He tried to tease.
Atsushi pulled his face out of Chuuya's shoulder. "Please be safe when you patrol. They'll come back.
Chuuya gripped his brother tighter.
"Let them try." He hissed, his gift glowing brighter.
He'd crush anyone who would try to take Atsushi from him.
~~~~~~~~~~
Chuuya hummed as he hopped along the top of buildings.
The parcel in his hands was precious, so he couldn't fly directly to the person. What he had in his hands was too precious to break while being careless. He was still getting a feel for his strength.
The butterfly on his shoulder pulsed, almost in agreement.
Izumi-san had kept this safe for him, until he could come and get it.
He touched down on top of the building the Sheep used at base, and started walking down the side of the wall.
Chuuya found an open window and walked right in, ignoring the surprised yells of the newcomers who weren't used to seeing him use windows as an entry point.
He cast his eyes about, searching for silver hair that always sparkled in the sun, no matter how dirty it got.
He found it a floor down, playing shogi with Yuan, who was pouting.
"Seriously? How are you this good after only watching people play?" She was groaning.
Atsushi opened his mouth to answer.
He cut himself off with a yelp as For the Tainted Sorrow picked him up and floated him to Chuuya's side.
"He's just like that." Chuuya sighed, patting his brother on the head.
"Onii-chan!" Atsushi wriggled.
"'Onii-chan?' Whatever happened to 'nii-nii?' Or 'onii?'" Chuuya sighed in mock sadness, making Atsushi grow beet red.
"Shut up! Shut up, shut up, shut up!" Atsushi tried to swipe at Chuuya, but couldn't get close enough for a hit.
Yuan laughed from her place on the floor. "So what's the thing in your hands?" She asked, motioning with her chin.
"Yeah! What is it?" Atsushi asked, now floating on his side.
"What is what?" Chuuya feigned ignorance.
"The package!" Atsushi pouted.
"What package?" Chuuya replied, a slightly mean smirk playing on his lips.
"Onii-chan! The package in your hands!" Atsushi whined.
"Oooohh, that package." Chuuya said, looking down at it. He slowly put Atsushi on his feet.
Atsushi huffed as he glared cutely at Chuuya. "Yes, that package!"
Chuuya shrugged, and placed the package in Atsushi's hands. "Why don't you find out yourself?"
Atsushi carefully plonked himself down and slowly unwrapped the cloth. He gasped in surprise.
Chuuya shifted on his feet, suddenly anxious.
Atsushi was a clever boy, extremely clever. And Chuuya was just an eleven year old who lived around him now.
Sure, he claimed he was Atsushi's brother, but-
Maybe an educational book would've been better? Or a mystery book?
Atsushi tackling him broke him out of his negative thoughts.
"Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU!" Atsushi screamed at the top of his lungs, pulling back and clutching the book of Chinese myths to his chest.
Chuuya sighed in relief, ruffling his brother's hair. It was getting longer. "You're welcome." He whispered.
~~~~~~~~~~
Atsushi was having trouble sleeping.
It was clear as day to anyone who looked at his little brother.
The eight year old was exhausted.
It was partially his own fault, he had been trying to follow Chuuya on his patrols and that resulted in a buncha thugs beaten black and blue, some beyond that, and Atsushi dragged back to the headquarters for a stern lecture.
It was partially Shirase's fault.
(It was mostly Shirase's fault, in Chuuya's eyes.)
Shirase had noticed that Chuuya didn't wake easily when he was sleeping next to Atsushi. So he asked (told, ordered, because he thought he was a leader) Chuuya to not sleep next to Atsushi.
Chuuya had tried sleeping in another room. With a locked door.
Atsushi had somehow ripped the door to shreds with his claws and waltzed right in, snuggling next to Chuuya. All without Chuuya waking up.
It was honestly impressive.
So Chuuya took to night patrols.
And apparently Atsushi took this as a challenge.
Because now he was following Chuuya around on his patrols. At night. In Suribachi City.
Chuuya wanted to fly into the sun and scream.
Maybe then he'd relieve some stress.
Right now, Atsushi was staring down Shirase.
Shirase looked away first.
If Atsushi had had a tail, Chuuya imagined it would've flicked in pleasure.
"Either you decrease the patrols, or take the same amount yourself." Atsushi said firmly. "After all, if you have such big eyes, then surely you'll be able to see the enemy coming, right?"
Shirase frowned, opening his mouth-
Yuan elbowed him in the gut. "We'll definitely figure something out, don't worry Atsu-chan!"
The eight year old stared the older people down, before nodding. He grabbed Chuuya's wrist on the way out and tugged him along.
Chuuya let himself be led by his brother, until they got to their room.
Atsushi snuggled into him, once Chuuya had sat on their bedroll.
"Naptime." He groaned, and even with the sun in their eyes, he was fast asleep.
Chuuya laughed lightly, and wrapped his arms around his little brother.
He sighed happily as he drifted off into a restful sleep.
~~~~~~~~~~
Chuuya was thirteen, and he had just killed a man.
He sat on top of a building, staring over the skyline.
Yeah, he'd fought people before. For survival.
But this guy. . .
This guy didn't back down. Not until Chuuya came the realization that he would keep going after Atsushi if he didn't put him down.
And maybe his emotions had influenced the choice too.
Could anyone blame him though?
"He's such a cute boy, you know? Cuter than you, and that's saying something."
"I look forward to making him into my little slave. I wonder what I should teach him first? Maybe not to cry? Or only to cry for me?"
Chuuya didn't feel sorrow. Or anguish. Or grief.
He felt numb.
Soft padding footsteps alerted him of his guest on the rooftop.
A limpet attached itself to his side.
Chuuya rested his head on his little brother's head, watching the sun set in the distance..
"What happened?" Atsushi finally asked.
Chuuya just gripped Atsushi tight, refusing to speak.
"No one will touch you." He promised. "Not if I'm around."
Atsushi looked up at him with his clever eyes. "Just promise me you'll stick around?"
"Always."
Chuuya swore to himself that he'd never break this vow.
~~~~~~~~~~
Chuuya hates being sick.
It may just be a regular fourteen year old gripe, but he hates being sick.
Sick back in the lab meant being quarantined. It meant being away from Atsushi. It meant being poked and prodded at until he crushed the scientist's instruments.
Here, in Suribachi City, being sick means that Atsushi still isn't allowed to be near him, only Yuan, because she is the only one who has the best constitution among the Sheep.
She placed a wet towel on Chuuya's forehead. "Shirase was upset that you couldn't patrol." She muttered, dunking the old one in colder than normal water.
"Noooott my fault." Chuuya groaned. "Would be if I co-"
Chuuya started hacking, coughing.
Yuan tched, glaring at the door. "I told that idiot you didn't need to patrol in the rain."
Chuuya sniffled, rather pitifully. He just wanted his brother.
"And Atsu-chan hasn't been sleeping well either, because you aren't beside him." Yuan continued to complain.
Chuuya groaned, closing his eyes. "Want Atsushi."
"Yes yes, I know you want your brother. Trust me, he wants you too." Yuan placated.
The being in Chuuya's head raged, rattling its chains.
"Need." Chuuya corrected with a groan.
Yuan sighed. "Look, I know you two are joined at the hip and all, but-"
"Yuan, need." Chuuya tried to convey.
Yuan stared at him, then groaned and headed for the door. "If I get in trouble, it's on you, you hear me?"
Chuuya didn't care, because in five seconds Atsushi was snuggled up against him, and the being in his head was quiet.
Chuuya relaxed finally.
They didn't need anyone, or anything.
Just them and the Sheep, and Suribachi City.
~~~~~~~~~~
One year later, Chuuya will learn just how wrong that assumption was, when he stares at soul-marks of the cat and the raven filling up on his wrist.
He will wonder to himself how he never noticed the emptiness in his soul before, and Ranpo will distract him by dragging him out on a case.
He will catch a glimpse of Dazai losing to Atsushi in chess again, with Edgar laughing behind his book and Doppo smiling fondly, Karl curled up in Doppo's lap as he tries to work.
Fukuzawa will be near the chess-playing duo, tea at the ready, and Yosano will be teasing Dazai. Kouyou will be stroking Atsushi's hair, praising him softly.
Ranpo and Chuuya will pass by Oda and Doc Glasses, who are no doubt on their way to tease Dazai.
Chuuya will smile to himself as he buys train tickets and sits with Ranpo on the train, as the older admires the marble in his hand.
Chuuya will be happy.
If only for a moment.