You're my Dog in Life and Death

The Attic

"Another dead end," Chuuya said with a sigh as he watched the skeleton crumble and the coals in its eyes burn out. A small sack dropped from its hand with a wet thud, and rolled to Dazai's feet. 

"Lovely. That's a severed head!" Dazai said in mild disgust as he took a look inside the bag before tossing it over his shoulder. "Strange; its human too. How in heaven did my slippery little friend get to the mortal realm?" 

"I don't know; and does it matter? I just want to know how and why they're conjuring these skeletons, and what they're trying to do."

"Corvid bones, shrunken heads, candles, vials of blood, and now a severed head. Maybe Nix is just a vulture core goth." Dazai said sarcastically after he listed all the things the skeletons had stolen; or at least tried to steal. 

"This looks like some voodoo shit, not an aesthetic, idiot..." Chuuya said with a sigh. "And I'm sure you have some idea of what it means, so just spill it already." 

"Well, you aren't far off. I think that Nix is preparing for some "voodoo shit." Considering that this has been focused on my territory, I'm guessing that they're making some sort of weapon or spell to try and take me down. I feel like it's not just about my land, but something else. If it was just about gaining their own territory, this plebe wouldn't go for the most powerful overlord in hell."

"So it's personal; that's not surprising. You usually manage to piss off everyone you come across. Come on, let's go home."

Dazai stared moodily out the window as Chuuya drove him back to his estate. He lived in the top two stories of what was essentially mafia headquarters. For now they were sleeping in separate rooms: Chuuya had wanted some space, and Dazai had relented after a bit of whining. He just wasn't ready for their relationship to go back to the way it was five years ago, and he still carried a lot of resentment. He wouldn't admit it even to himself, but he was afraid to get close because he didn't want to be hurt again. He didn't want any... intimate feelings clouding his judgement. That had lost him his soul in the first place. 

Chuuya was laying in bed and scrolling through his phone when he heard a heavy thud on the door. He smirked; Dazai had discovered his new lock. A second later though, the bastard kicked the door in instead of fucking waiting for Chuuya to unlock it for him. 

"Chuuuuyaaaa~" 

"The fuck you want?" 

"I got a lead~!"

"Good for you." Chuuya sighed, not taking the bait. Dazai flopped onto the bed next to him, trying to get a reaction. Chuuya ignored him, knowing just how much Dazai hated it when he did that. Dazai scooted closer and rested his head on Chuuya's shoulder. 

"I just checked the records for the portals to the human world~ Only three were opened today, and I know exactly where. This narrows things down a lot!" 

"Have fun then, it doesn't seem like you need to drag me along in the middle of the night."

"It's barely ten, and don't pretend like you ever go to bed before midnight anyway."

"Fine," but don't fucking try me; I'm not in the mood." Chuuya grumbled. He got up and sullenly put on his jacket, then followed the giddy idiot out the broken door. 

"The first portal was opened at IMP, which isn't unusual, so let's just skip over it. The second is more suspicious, and was opened up in the suburbs of Pride, and is completely undocumented. Let's head there first!" 

"This guy doesn't have much money, considering where he's operating from."

"He, she, or they," Dazai corrected annoyingly, "and it's smart, really, to pick places out of sight and mind, especially to open portals and mess with dead bodies." He said, peering through the grimy window of an old antiques shop, the closed sign barely visible through the yellow glass.