Network -> Action

[darkdisgrace]

[The dumb thing about Chuuya and Dazai is that they both have an incredibly sensitive sixth sense about the other. Perhaps it's something about knowing each other after so many years, but Dazai just being gone in the morning, his shoes left behind, everything where it had been left the night before sans the man himself-- it set off alarm bells.

This wasn't the 'Dazai is fucking with me again and I need to make sure all my groceries haven't been replaced with dog treats or my clothing hasn't been shrunk 2 sizes' feeling, this was the 'Dazai is doing something incredibly dangerous and stupid and is in Trouble' feeling.

Chuuya's out of bed, dressed and out the door in moments, charm in hand.]

If anyone has seen Dazai Osamu, a stupid asshole with a fake smile and bandages all over him, give me a call. You might recognize him from his dumb radio show. Ideally tie the bastard to a tree so he doesn't leave, but I've got dibs on kicking his ass.

[That's all Chuuya says for now, because he's setting off to search the town more. And after searching the town with Kotone, he's off searching further out.

Sometime at 3am that night, there's the distant booming of an explosion. It looks like there was a rockslide over on the side of the mountains, from this distance. In reality, Chuuya has just blown a hole in the mountain from sheer frustration (and fear. Lots of fear).

Over twenty-four hours after that query on the network, Chuuya can be found in the tavern, absolutely wasted in the early afternoon. His eyes are bloodshot, face lined with exhaustion. He hasn't slept, and alcohol is only a small portion of the reason he looks like hell.]



[OOC: Dazai disappeared for a canon update! TW: Some of the threads on this post might contain allusions to suicide, since uh. Dazai is Dazai and Chuuya is Concerned about that. I will warn whenever that comes up.]

Comments

[orphne]

[It's almost like she can hear Dazai's voice in her head, telling her to check on Chuuya. She knows that already -- she'd have done it whether he was asking or not -- but it seems impossible to think that he might be gone.

It's only been a little over a day. Astralin had been gone for a week. It's what she keeps telling herself, anyway, as she slides into a seat next to Chuuya and gently touches his shoulder.]

Hey. I'm gonna order something to eat. You want anything?

[Other than alcohol... he smells like he's had enough of that for the minute.]

cw bsd spoilers and INJURY

[nullificates]

(a very concerning missing piece is how he left, and even more, how he returned. his mind can't seem to come to that memory, blocked, and moreover, it can't. not when his legs are shattered, bones broken, moving is daunting with how everything seems out of place. dazai hates pain, and the amount of it clouds his thoughts, make the air trapped in his bloody lungs as he coughs crimson.

ah, it's not good at all. by the smell, he knows he's not in that elevator, even if his eyes refuse to open, head dizzy - ddudum, ddudum. he has the poison to deal with... and just as that thought crosses his mind, the door allows for breeze to enter, the characteristic scent of chuuya smothering the room, and he simply, like an asshole, gives him a thumbs up.)

Hey, I'm back.

[quizpersona]

[ It's concerning maybe that Gogol manages to find him while he's having his little tantrum at the cost of the mountain. Then again Chuuya isn't hard to track—never mind a Chuuya so overcome with emotion he's likely not covering tracks.

Now if only it was to make things better rather than worse. Point is, Gogol is waiting for him as he re-enters civilization. Sat with his legs dangling and swinging leisurely off a half-wall. ]

There really are still no signs of that man! But this might be for the best for you in the end.

[darkdisgrace]

[When Kotone finds Chuuya, he's got his head pillowed on the bar counter, a bottle of whiskey nearby. Not wine, for once. He's too keyed up to enjoy it. His hair is a mess from all the running around, and his eyes are bloodshot from lack of sleep, and he just wants... to shut down for awhile.]

M'not hungry.

[Which is telling in it's own way, that Chuuya isn't up for eating. Chuuya's always had a healthy appetite.]

CW: manhandling of a critically injured person

[darkdisgrace]

[Honestly, Chuuya looks... like he's definitely seen better days, when he walks into the room. Kotone had done her best to reassure him, but the not knowing had clearly done a number on Chuuya. His skin is pale in the way that says he's had more alcohol than food and just as little sleep, dark circles beneath his eyes telling of restless wanderings in hopes of finding a clue, something, anything. If Dazai had just... left the world, somehow, or if he had finally gone through with his ambitions of dying.

He hadn't even been fully recovered from corruption when Dazai disappeared, and his disappearance certainly hadn't helped there.

So when he steps into their room to throw himself into the bath to rest his aching muscles, he's startled to see Dazai there, alive, bleeding and broken but alive and--

Just as infuriating as always.]

YOU SON OF A BITCH!!!!

[The relief he feels is almost incapacitating. So of course he's going to show it by screaming his lungs out and crossing the room to grab Dazai and shake him.] Don't hey me!!!!

[orphne]

Okay.

[She raises a hand to beckon the bartender over and order two bowls of stew. Maybe not the healthiest meal, but it's relatively easy to eat, and it'll have veggies and meat for protein. And, if Chuuya doesn't eat his serving, she'll just eat it for him.

That out of the way, she pillows her own head on the bar next to him, chin atop her arms, and glances sideways at him.]

I'm really hungry, so I have to eat something, but after that, wanna go look again?

[It's not that she thinks it'll make a difference, but, for Chuuya's sake, maybe the action will help.]

[darkdisgrace]

[Chuuya really hadn't even been trying to cover his tracks: Yeah it'd give dazai warning of his approach if he was just trying to hide out again, but at the same time.... if Dazai was out there, it would mean he knew he was coming. A catch-22 of sorts, but ultimately the innate wrongness of the morning had won out in terms of Chuuya's chosen tactics.

By the time he trudges back into civilization long after nightfall, it's clear he's been out pretty much all day: dirt on his clothes, scuffed shoes and gloves.

And he's exhausted from the look of it, but not so exhausted he can't snap at Gogol tiredly.]

It's like that bastard up and disappeared. [Again. Something bitter wells in his chest.] And how d'yha suppose that, huh?

[darkdisgrace]

S'the point? I can't find him.

[It feels like that time four years ago, only worse somehow, because Dazai had been slowly managing to almost convince him he'd at least... tell him if he left again. Leave some sign... something to let Chuuya know he was breathing.

But he hadn't even taken any of his possessions or clothes and that says... too many things, to Chuuya. One gloved hand curls tightly against the wood of the bartop, leather gloves creaking from the pressure.]

[orphne]

I just don't like sitting still, I guess.

[It's an overly-simplistic answer, but action is almost always preferable to inaction. Even if it's pointless, or hopeless, being able to move means you're still alive.

Even if some others aren't. She knows what Chuuya has to be thinking; it's the same thing she's worried about herself. But she can't just write him off without trying.

She has to wiggle a bit atop the bar, but she reaches out and gently touches the back of his hand. Hey. Don't break the bar.]

You know, Astralin-san was missing for a week. He said it felt like he'd just gone to sleep and woke up here a week later.

text

[murderingjustice]

have you checked the sewers?

[nullificates]

OUCH--OUCH--OUCH--- FELL FROM ELEVATOR, FELL FROM ELEVATOR, YELL AT ME LATER, OUCH-- CHUUYA, OUCH, PAIN!!!

(he knows this is not sole anger. dazai's fully aware at what he's done to chuuya over the years, and everything makes it even more terrifying that he might leave. he's not at all stupid, he'd knew that from the day he left the mafia, not a word, not a sound, no resurfacing for years on end. chuuya'd never be fine without dazai, and quite frankly, as much as both hate the ordeal they'd been given, dazai never is either.

he can forgive the shaking, mostly because it rearranged his injuries further, and he takes a deep breath to attempt to handle the pain.)

You have around 2 minutes to yell at me, 7 to get me Kotone-- (fuck, FUCK, he can't help but suck teeth.) Poison, Chuu-- ugh--.

[darkdisgrace]

Dazai is a leech, but I'd like to hope even he wouldn't be able to tolerate an active sewer.

A dry one maybe, but I don't know if there's any around here. Hell, I don't even know where the sewer access is.

[darkdisgrace]

[Usually, Chuuya was the same. Usually, he's be out there doing anything possible to resolve a problem, to fix things. He's never been a 'sitting still and thinking' kinda guy.

But this was digging at old wounds, old hurts that had never truly healed. Maybe Dazai had just left. Maybe he was dead. Both meant Chuuya had lost his partner again.

And yet his grip does relax a little when Kotone touches the back of his hand. Since she's here, he doesn't want to cause problems.] And what guarantee is there he'll come back?

[No 'not that I want him to', no 'i'm better off'. Dazai was an ally he thought he could count on here, and now he's gone.]

[murderingjustice]

You don't? Oh, that's too bad.

Sounds like you'd be in need of a detective here.

[darkdisgrace]

You fell from a fucking-- what?!

[Okaaaay, Chuuya is stopping the shaking at least. He takes in the look of Dazai, eyes widening because... okay that isn't just some injuries. That's the prison uniform. He remembers it. Fuck fuck fuck--] You-- shit, later.

[Focus on what's needed to keep Dazai breathing. he drags in a breath, fumbling for his charm.]

Fucker I am going to skin you alive if you die on me, so hold still and keep your head up!

[He props Dazai against the headboard before he manages to pull his charm out of his pocket to call.]

Kotone-chan, can you hear me? I need you to come to my room right now, as fast as possible, you have 7 minutes.

[That's. ominous but there's no time.] Can't you slow your heartbeat down or something?! shit!

[darkdisgrace]

Is that you offering to help? Because last I checked, you looked like you wanted to tear his throat out with your teeth.

[nullificates]

(he does what he can. his heartbeat can't be too low, or he'll pass out. it can't be too high, either. it has to be right, and he has to push away the pain to access that for a moment. breathe in, breathe out. dazai's eyes close, so he can separate himself from the bones that creak and stab his limbs, his heart beat slows just enough.

it might just be enough to keep the poison from acting out, and dazai from worsening his own condition. all energy is for that, so he won't speak for the time being.)

[orphne]

[??? Seven minutes?? That's not a lot of time! She's not terribly far away, just in the sewing room of the club building, but still, a leisurely walk from there to the inn would take at least five.

But it sounds urgent, so she doesn't ask any questions. Something's wrong, she can feel it more than anything she could put a name to, but- her chest hurts with a mounting dread.]

Coming! [is the only acknowledgement Chuuya gets back via charm as she takes off at a run, grabbing the doorjam to help propel herself around the sharp corner and sprint out the door. She doesn't have her naginata, but she does have her Evoker. Hopefully that's enough.]

[murderingjustice]

well. it depends on two things

one: how much can you pay?
two: do you care in which condition I find him?

[darkdisgrace]

[And rather than distract Kotone or Dazai with talk, Chuuya squeezes Dazai’s hand before fumbling for the first aid kit stashed next to the bed. Thank fuck he’d put it there for lingering injuries after corruption.

Too much time has passed to to halt the poison in more conventional…. Or unconventional ways, but chuuya keeps an eye on Dazai’s breathing as he returns to squeezing his hand.]

[nullificates]

(all he can do is wait. the little energy he can spare, he does it by caressing chuuya's knuckles with his thumb, lazily, but not by choice. breathing, breathing, and trying not to cough blood on chuuya, that's what he can do.

once he finds himself with enough confidence to talk again, however,)

She can heal. Explain to her how to do it.

[orphne]

[The honesty is kind of refreshing, really. She'd gotten so used to both of them blustering about how much they hated each other that it's nice to hear it spoken plainly for once. Not that it's a surprise.]

There isn't one. [Sorry, Chuuya. After everything she's been through, she's not the one to give pleasant platitudes about having blind hope.] But think about how annoying he'd be if he saw us sulking about him being gone.

[Her fingers wrap gently around his hand, not quite holding it, the angle is a little wrong, but doing what she can.] So can you help me look after we eat?

[darkdisgrace]

[the touch soothes only the barest degree, especially when the next words out of Dazai’s mouth are that. Chuuya swears vividly, gritting his teeth as further tension settles about his shoulder.]

You want to— fucking hell Dazai you’re gonna owe her so many apologies after this!

[because there will be an after. There will be]

[orphne]

[It feels like she's in Tartarus all over again, in a way she can't explain. She's going to be so, so mad if it's not important, but considering it's Chuuya who said it-- it has to be important, doesn't it? It's something with Dazai?

They can almost certainly hear her taking the stairs two at a time to make it upstairs to the rooms, and then she just shoves the door open hard enough that it bangs against the opposite wall. She's panting for breath, but her back is straight with the familiar tension of being in Leader Mode, taking in Chuuya and-]

Dazai-san!

[She takes a few steps forward, eyes widening at the extent of his injuries. Her hand drops to her Evoker, but she glances to Chuuya and shakes her head.]

Can I heal him? Will his ability stop it?

cw VERY BAD suicide tendency

[nullificates]

(he wishes he could do it himself. explain to her how 'no longer human' truly works - but there's no time, there's no energy as his thumb grows more and more lethargic. he can barely hear the steps, so far away from them as they approach closer, thumping that doesn't quite reach him.

it's so delightful to be as he is, no pain, his heart responding each time less to his commands. sometimes he gets here, accidentally, purposefully, and he has to turn back. he can never stay where his soul wants him to be.

he is barely listening.)