The End Of It All | Akutagawa Ryunosuke x Any! Reader

{Chapter 1}

When the world stops spinning, who will be there to witness its beauty? When all of time stops, who will be the one to walk among the frozen moments of life? To keep the world to yourself is a thing many people wish they could have. That skill belongs to one person. One of the Hellhounds of Yokohama - Y/N L/N. The skill which was so highly classified that only executives and their partner knew. 

This beauty of a skill was used for what many considered as criminal activity, but they viewed it as earning a living. A job required to be done - a job which required their skill. Awaking their partner from the time freeze, the win was guarantied. Rashomon could slaughter the opponents without them ever being aware. Inhumane? Most likely. Well paid? Most definitely. 

The two completed mission after mission, soon becoming feared across the city of Yokohama and becoming renowned in the Port Mafia. They were worshipped. An unstoppable duo, one which could rival the two of the past. Fearless they were, well, when it came to the battlefield. 

Here they were. A Port Mafia Event. One which included all members and patrons. They were stuck in two separate corners, silent, both staring at each other knowing exactly what their partner was thinking. "When can we leave?" 

The two had been the focus of most of the patrons, wanting to know the secret of their success. Remarkably, the two had avoided this attention by agreeing to not be close to each other throughout the entire night. Party goers only wanted the two together, never separate. The plan definitely came in handy for the two socially inept assassins. 

The noise was tumultuous, the whole room filled with chatter and drunk cheering, especially from one particular ginger executive. Merriness seeped into every inch of the vast room, filling every ear drum with the rhythm of small talk. It seemed almost uncontrollable, reaching to the point where one couldn't pick up on a specific conversation.  

Ding ding ding. The tapping of the glass indicated a speech. Finally, something to distract the patrons from attempting to get the two together. The boss stepped up to the platform at the front of the room, accompanied by Elise as always. The power that man conveyed to us all was so great that you would feel him looking down upon us all. 

"Welcome members and friends of the Port Mafia. We are glad to have you back on this fine evening." Mori began, capturing his audience's attention with startling precision. He went on, telling the patrons what they wanted to hear, about the success of the mafia and how much revenue they were set to make in the next year. Everyone seemed very pleased with the percentages they would be taking home for themselves. However, there was one secret on everyone's mind. "Any questions, feel free to ask me now" The boss finished up. 

"What's the secret skill of the hellhounds?" That question was popping up not only from patrons but from mafia members themselves. I could see the glint in Mori's eye, a glint which only meant that he had planned for this to happen. He had planned to reveal this tonight. Something the two in the corners surely realised. 

"Well, shall we invite them up then?" The boss declared, an offer the two couldn't refuse at a risk of embarrassing the mafia. Every pupil within the room was latched onto one of the pair as they walked from the back of the room to meet Mori on the platform. The atmosphere was thick with anticipation, a stench that one could not mistake. It permeated every inch of the room, allowing the two to realise how serious Mori was in this. 

Y/N gave Mori a glare and only they could decipher the murderous intent hidden behind the dark eyes of Akutagawa. The one thing they had been avoiding - attention - had been brought directly to them, and only Mori knew how much worse that attention was going to become. 

"I will now show you one of the biggest secrets within the Mafia. One we have been hiding for almost seven years. The skill of Y/N L/N. Take it away." The room all waited, watching the assassin's every move as they bent towards the floor, placing one hand on it. 

"The End Of It All" They could feel the energy transferring into them, taking it all away from the Earth to halt the passage of time until finally. Silence. All of the eyes were locked onto them but the stench of anticipation had dissipated. The frozen statues of the moment. They studied all of the faces, how eager they looked and how unknowing that the skill was in motion. Y/N walked over to their boss, tapping him to break him free of the grips of time. 

"What do you think you are doing, revealing our secret?" They demanded their boss, something which was most likely a risk but it was only the two of them conscious in this moment. 

"Rumours were spreading and had to be halted. Now do your job and reawaken everyone in this room." They obediently did what they were told to. Tapping every person looking towards the raised platform, leaving their partner until last. 

"As you can see," Mori announced to the crowd, "L/N's skill stops the passage of time, you have all been released from it; however, the Earth is currently not spinning. Here they will show you what happens if a person is touched by them." Y/N walked towards their partner, tapping him on the shoulder, reanimating him. He looked at them with the murderous intent he had previously had on his face but it softened to slightly less murderous when he saw that it was Y/N. 

"Y/N, release your skill from the world." They reached for the ground again, feeling all of the energy rush from them, back into the Earth's core as the circular motion of day and night began again. They were weak from releasing so many people as they were only used to releasing one or two during missions. Akutagawa helped them off stage, still clearly disgruntled as to what Mori had revealed to the masses. 

The two decided that they would make a quick escape to dodge the questions they were bound to receive. Despite living closer to the venue, Akutagawa walked the longer way to Y/N's apartment, making sure they were safe. 

"You really didn't have to." Y/N said, surprised that the man had even bothered. 

"You were incredibly weak and you're my partner, I need to make sure that you're safe so that we can still succeed missions." He replied. "You know what might happen now, don't you?"

"Yeah, if there's any leaks, I could be a target."

"Be careful, you're vital to us." With that Akutagawa left, walking into the cold of the December night. Y/N walked up the stairs to reach their apartment but they felt a slight nervousness. They knew that they were going to be a target soon, they were going to be on edge for a while. Nevertheless, they went to bed as normal. 

The noises from outside seeped in, the sound of rubber against tarmac, the occasional horn and the rustling of trees in the wind. However, the person in the apartment soon became oblivious to all of them as they slowly gave in to their tiredness. 

Paranoia. It's a strange emotion, it crawls in everywhere. Invading every space of your mind. Even when you've escaped the sentient world. It travels into dreams, twisting them into something sinister, something which doesn't help you recharge. Waking you up just when you start sleeping deeply. It's an evil emotion. It makes you start doubting your every move, thinking you've just turned the wrong direction. Thinking that wrong move will be your last.

Well, what if that paranoia was justified?