twin darkness, polar frames

001

The thump of Dazai's boots were deafening in the expanse of Mori's lavish meeting room.

The creak of the double doors opening and then the subsequent slam is loud as Mori sips his tea. His countenance is calm and stoic as ever. Dazai stands to the side of him patiently, ever the loyal dog awaiting orders at its master's polished shoes. He is just 15, and yet the collar around his neck is as tight as a noose, and it is not the relief of human sin that he had dreamed of.

Mori's tone is saccharine, too sweet, cloying as it always is. His every word is controlled by an unmistakable, pragmatic desire to progress.

"Dazai, you know why you have come here."

And he does. Recently partnered with Chuuya Nakahara, earning the title of Double Black, his associate has run off in a hissy fit. Dazai has no doubt that Mori has had Chuuya's exact location pinpointed the moment he had been reported unresponsive when the Port Mafia had tried to contact him. This was a test, and he knows that is why he was ordered here.

"It appears that your colleague has taken a small vacation. Being that you are his new partner, I found it suitable that you would be the one to retrieve him, don't you think?" Mori commands rather than asks, and Dazai is particularly hinged on the word choice of 'retrieve,' as if Dazai was a little lap dog fetching a toy.

Mori has his typical smirk plastered on his face. It is not a gentle one, and could be more suitably compared to a rabies-riddled canine bearing all his drool covered teeth. Dazai's tone remains completely impassive when he speaks with a sense of finality.

"Of course, sir."

And that was the end of the discussion. Dazai strides past the thick double doors once more, and unlike he and Mori's past discussions, the man does not try to stop his departure this time.

Dazai had found a lead in no time, nothing less than typical expectations from Mori's esteemed recruit, and the second agent of Double Black. Chuuya's seen picking fights with petty gunmen around the criminal underbelly of the city. Knowing Chuuya as well as Dazai did, this was likely his violent way of letting out his frustrations, because he couldn’t resort to returning to the Port Mafia to take down some of the smaller crime rings they knew about, all courtesy of Chuuya being frustrated with the Port Mafia itself.

Not exactly the Port Mafia, but mostly misplaced anger on Dazai and then correctly placed anger on Mori on teaming both Chuuya and Dazai up.

Dazai is studying Chuuya fight a squad of around five armed gunmen from the guise of a corner. Chuuya has unquestionably noticed his presence, but decided to shoulder that particular bother until the actual opposing team was unconscious.

Chuuya has no trouble taking them all down. Despite his age and height, he uses his smaller, lean build to his advantage well in physical combat. Dazai walks up behind Chuuya, and the shorter boy scoffs.

"I'm sure Mori sent you to find me, didn't he, and I'm also sure you obeyed like the pathetic dog you are," Chuuya spat.

"Never can say 'no' to him, right, you bug-eyed mackerel?"

Dazai opened his mouth to make a witty quip back when Chuuya saw his one visible eye widen, and suddenly Chuuya's being pushed to the side, and he hears Dazai let out a pained grunt. He immediately put his hand over a spot just under where his right pectoral muscle was. When Chuuya looks around to see what could've possibly wounded Dazai, he sees one of the bodies he'd previously thought was knocked unconscious have a raised, trembling arm with a pistol in the man's hand, barrel smoking from just being shot.

Chuuya lets out a frustrated snarl at the man who just shot Dazai. With white-hot rage burning inside Chuuya, angry at Dazai being here, then being stupid enough to get hurt, and him being partnered with Dazai in the first place, Chuuya's ears are ringing with nothing but fury. He drags the man to a curb, lays the back of his cranium against it. The man's jaw is limp from his unconscious state, and Chuuya forces it open, then lifts his leg.