We don't talk about Jouno

It's not like he's going anywhere

Tetchou knew he was walking quickly, and Chuuya practically had to jog to keep up with him. Tetchou didn't really care, at the moment. There were answers he needed from Gogol. The decay of angels had singled out Jouno in particular. They hadn't tried to recruit anyone else, even from the port mafia. Why?

"Maybe slow down a bit?" Chuuya asked. "It's not like Gogol's going anywhere." Tetchou slowed his pace, but only slightly. Chuuya had rejoined the hunting dogs when he'd recovered from the vampire infection and the port mafia had fallen, a few weeks after Jouno died. That was how Tetchou kept time now. How long did it happen after Jouno died?

Things were always a bit awkward with Chuuya. First, he'd left the hunting dogs without saying why. Now, Tetchou understood. He'd seen Fukuchi kill somebody, and didn't think anyone would believe him. Tetchou felt horrible about that. Chuuya had joined the port mafia, though. They were mostly dead or scattered now, but Chuuya would always carry the taint of organized crime. Tetchou's final reason was the most selfish one, though. Both Chuuya and Tachihara got infected, and were able to survive. They had each other. They each got to keep the person that was special to them, and Tetchou didn't.

Chuuya reached out and taped Tetchou on the shoulder. That was as close as Chuuya got to hugging anybody that wasn't Tachihara. "Tetchou. I'm here." Tetchou nodded, his way of saying thanks. Tetchou took a deep breath. He could do this. For Jouno. He could do anything for Jouno. Tetchou scanned his access card in the door. The hunting dogs didn't have uniforms anymore. They were always Fukuchi's idea, so Teruko got rid of them for obvious reasons when she was promoted to commander. Tetchou missed being able to have a pocket that was designed specifically for his access card, though. He was always losing his.

The door opened with an electronic swishing noise. Chuuya followed Tetchou inside, letting him take the lead. Tetchou got the sense that it wasn't just because he was his senior officer. During the vampire outbreak, Gogol had been the one to take Chuuya, and deliver him into the waiting arms of Dostoevsky. Apparently, after running him over with an eighteen wheeler first, which didn't do much but stun Chuuya. That, and leave him with a great story to tell. Tetchou could see the silent suffering in Chuuya since he'd come back, though. Chuuya didn't talk about what had happened to him there, but Tetchou had enough of an idea to know that seeing Gogol would be traumatic. Tetchou found himself struck by a newfound appreciation for Chuuya. He knew he'd be interrogating Gogol, but he came anyway for Tetchou. Jouno would have either loved or been amused by that.

Gogol looked different than when Tetchou had seen him last. The mad jester himself didn't look quite the same without his signature outfit, and the patch from his eye was missing, revealing his heterochromia. The unhinged looking grin that spread across one side of his face to the other was gone, reduced to a faint frown. "Well, well, well." He managed. "Who has come to see me?"

Tetchou sat down in the chair across from Gogol. "I'm here for information about the decay of angels." Gogol snorted. "That's great, coming from you. They're all dead. Every last one of them. Dead!" Gogol smacked his hands against the table, and his power canceling restraints connected with the metal, creating a sound that rang out throughout the small cell.

"I'm aware." Tetchou said calmly. "But that's not the end of it, right?" Supposedly, the decay of angels were dead. However, Tetchou and Maya's teams had been cooperating to gather information on the recent activities of a group that seemed to fit their bill. "I heard your boyfriend got killed." Gogol said. "That must tear you up inside." Diya's glare intensified. "If I'm being honest though, I'm happy Jouno is dead."

Tetchou didn't register that he was moving across the room until he'd slammed Gogol into the wall, and his hands were around his throat. "Tetchou!" But Tetchou barely heard Chuuya. He was too focused on strangling the life out of this person. This just seemed to make Gogol happier, though, as if that was what he wanted.

"My whole life has been ruined by Jouno." He choked out. "If he hadn't existed, if the promise of someone better wasn't always hanging over my head, I would have been trusted more. If not for the godforsaken phantom Jouno, I would have been able to watch Fedya more. If I could have, then... then he...then he wouldn't have..."

Gogol trailed off, both because Tetchou was squeezing the air out of his lungs, and because of some emotion he was feeling that Tetchou couldn't understand. He followed Gogol's gaze to where Chuuya was standing a few feet back. Tetchou was vaguely aware of Chuuya using his gravity manipulation to loosen his grip on Gogol's throat. The former member of the decay of angels dropped to the floor, gasping for breath.

"This isn't you, Tetchou." Chuuya said. "He insulted Jouno." Tetchou seethed. "Jouno wouldn't want you to kill him. He wouldn't want you to live with that." Tetchou's fists were still balled tightly shut. "Please." Chuuya said. "There's been enough death for one lifetime." Gogol gave Chuuya an appreciative look. Tetchou turned back to Gogol.

"I'll listen to Chuuya here because he's the one you helped traumatize." He said threateningly. "But if you ever so much as mention Jouno's name again, I'll kill you where you stand, whether that would be justice or not. I think it's sick you've found a way to blame this on him. Anyone but yourself and your dead boyfriend, right?" Tetchou let his hands relax. As much as he hated to admit it, it felt good to have someone to yell his frustration at.

"I won't mention your dead boyfriend if you don't talk about mine, okay?" Gogol said weakly. Tetchou nodded in agreement. "Gogol. What happened in the prison?" Chuuya tried. Gogol didn't look up. Instead, he put his head in his hands and started rocking back and forth. "They're all dead." He finally said. "Fedya. Sigma. Dazai." Chuuya visibly flinched at Dazai's name. Everyone in this room had lost someone important to them, so it was a look Tetchou knew all too well.

"How?" Chuuya asked calmly. "I don't know." Gogol said. "I just came back to see how the game was going, and I found the bodies. I never meant for that to happen." Tetchou had some serious evidence to the contrary. "You poisoned them all, right?" Tetchou asked. Gogol nodded sadly. "Dazai was a member of the armed detective agency. Where I stand now, you're on the hook for his murder. I don't think you'll be overly well liked in a court of law."

Gogol's eyes shot wide open. "It's not my fault!" He exclaimed. Tetchou turned around to leave, motioning for Chuuya to follow. "You can either tell me what I want to know, or I can hand you over to the authorities. You have until the end of the day to decide." The sound of the door closing behind Tetchou cut off everything but the tail end of Gogol's scream.