Love & War (Soukoku and Fyoya)

In Which Dazai Discovers Chuuya

Chuuya sometimes heard Arahabaki in his head, telling him things. They were mostly soft whispers, but Dazai made them completely vanish. Even with how irritating Dazai was, Chuuya supposed it was better than the horrible things Arahabaki made him think.

If Arahabaki was whispering before, he was roaring now. Chuuya was so close to getting rid of him- Arahabaki would lose any connection with the physical world and Chuuya would die.

Dazai stared out the window idly as the world blurred passed. It had been an hour and forty minutes- they were so close. In mere minutes, he would be with Chuuya. Was Chuuya still alive?

At the warehouse, Fyodor was inspecting the finery of the pen he would use for this momentous occasion. Nikolai stood silently in corner. He still hoped that Chuuya would tell Fyodor the truth. Nonetheless, Nikolai kept he word and said nothing.

"It is time," Fyodor exclaimed. He brought the ink and began writing on the paper. Chuuya sighed.

As Fyodor lifted the pen, having written those fateful words, Chuuya closed his eyes. When he opened them, he was no longer in the warehouse. He was in a vast field of sunflowers that went into the horizon. Chuuya was staring upward at the bright blue sky. It was temperate and mild. He felt his breath even out. Chuuya's worries faded into the back of his mind, along with his memories. What had he been thinking about again?

Suddenly, someone approached him. The man was tall with dark chocolate curls. Chuuya felt oddly at ease seeing his face. In his state, Chuuya could not quite place who the man was; just that he felt some way about him before- love. At that moment, Chuuya's mind was blank.

Rather than their usual clothes, Chuuya and Dazai were both wearing causal outfits. Dazai laid beside Chuuya, caressing his face gently.

"You did well," Dazai whispered. "Rest now, Chuuya."

Chuuya inhaled and felt this rapid falling sensation. There was a misty veil before him. Something is the back of Chuuya's mind told him that it was safe, that something was on the other side, calling for him. Chuuya grinned and walked through the veil, welcoming whatever was seeking him out.

Chuuya fell and blood trailed down from his eyes. He was limp, nothing but sporadic movements. Fyodor immediately dropped the pen and sprinted toward Chuuya, leaning over him.

"Chuuya?" Fyodor asked, frantic. "Chuuya? What is going on? Are you alright? Answer me, please."

Chuuya was unresponsive; he had finally gone still. By now, Chuuya had completely flushed and gone pale. He was immobile. Fyodor gently pressed his ear to Chuuya's chest- no heartbeat. Chuuya was dead. What had happened? Had something gone horribly wrong?

Fyodor simply cradled Chuuya's head. For the first time, Fyodor could felt sobs low in his throat. It quickly became clear what had happened. It was Fyodor- Fyodor has gotten rid of Arahabaki, the being that had bonded with Chuuya; by doing so, Arahabaki had killed Chuuya. Nothing was left. Even if Arahabaki had not killed him, the pressure of unbinding them surely would have.

Fyodor had held that passion in the palm of his hand- but it was too late. He had made his plan into a reality, but at what cost?

Nikolai felt sorry for Dazai. Dazai had lost those final moments with Chuuya, and Fyodor was the one holding him. Nikolai felt sorry for Chuuya- he was almost certain that Chuuya would prefer it if Dazai held him. Chuuya had changed something about Nikolai- he refused the idea of feeling sorry for himself. Whatever the case, Chuuya had proven that Fyodor could love. Just the fact that Fyodor had found that joy made Nikolai feel better about the whole situation.