Chapter Text
"Do you have four stomachs or something?" Dazai wondered as he watched the weretiger shoved food into his mouth. Well, he supposed he couldn't say shove, as the other was quite elegant in how he ate…astonishingly.
Still, the speed he was displaying was not normal.
Chuuya ignored the vampire as he cleaned every single plate without leaving a morsel of food behind. At first, the humans around them would stare at the redhead with their jaws slack, wondering just how much the petite boy could eat. Eventually, they got bored and went back to minding their own business.
The waitress ran back and forth, taking away the empty plates and bringing up new ones.
"Bring another basket of baguette—actually make that two basket, five shepherd's pie, some more roast lambs, chicken, pork, beef, whatever you got," Dazai told the waitress as his eyes roamed over the menu. "You know what, just bring everything that is filing, no need to bother with the taste. If you can stuff him to death, I'll pay triple the amount."
The waitress screamed when a knife flew right past her and towards the raven's head. The vampire didn't even look up as his hand shot up, grabbing the knife by the handle before hurling it back. The woman's knees were shaking as she watched the redhead catching the knife with ease and stabbing it into the chicken.
"You got that?" The vampire asked disinterestedly, eyes never once lifted from the menu.
Nodding hastily, the waitress scurried away to have the cook prepare the next round of feast.
The vampire let out a long sigh. "I'm helping you order food and you tried to skewer me."
"Don't think that just because I don't understand that you can talk shit about me," Chuuya growled with a vein throbbing in his forehead. There was just something he didn't like about the vampire's attitude just then, so he acted.
"Animal instincts huh?" Dazai mumbled as he looked at the way the werebeast was glowering at him. He could almost imagine a small orange cat, hissing and puffing itself up to look big and threatening. The vampire suddenly felt a strange urge to tease his companion more.
Unfortunately, a hushed whisper soon brought his attention elsewhere.
Chuuya took a bite of his chicken while Dazai ran his finger over the rim of a wine cup. While neither of them acted out of ordinary, both of them focused their attention to the back of the restaurant where a group of soldiers sat. Usually, these human soldiers were loud and noisy, but this group here was unusually quiet.
They chatted quietly among themselves, all of their faces serious and some even started to get anger the more they conversed. After listening to them for a while, Chuuya turned to Dazai who had picked up a cup and was playing with the dark fluid inside.
"They're talking about your masterpiece from three days ago," Dazai informed him with a sly grin. "Since the witch is missing, they're convinced that the destruction of the fighting ring was her doing."
Chuuya lightly bit on the tip of his fork as he looked over those soldiers. "This is why you got rid of that witch's body?"
"I told you, humans don't trust witches. All you need is to give them a reason and they'll push all the blames onto the witches."
"How stupid."
Dazai set the cup he was playing around with in front of Chuuya. Chuuya looked at the weird liquid inside for a moment before picking it up and taking a sip.
He quickly spat it back out.
"What the fuck is this?!" He coughed, feeling the sour and bitter aftertaste sensation in his throat.
"It's call wine," Dazai sniggered, "Human makes it with fermented grape juice."
"Fermented? It's rotten?!" Chuuya choked in disbelieve. After eating rotten food for so long, he wouldn't even care if it's crawling with bugs. But why would human willingly eat rotten food?
"That's why you're a kid." Dazai deadpanned.
"Who are you calling a kid?!"
A man came by just then, dropping a large barrel right next to their table, saying something to Dazai before leaving. Confused, Chuuya looked down to the barrel. He could hear water sound coming from inside it. When he smelled the familiar scent coming from it and that iconic cow mark drawn on the wooden surface, it didn't take a genius to find out what it was.
The damn leech had ordered an entire barrel of milk for him!
People screamed as a table flew across the restaurant—along with the body of a raven-haired man—right into the group of soldiers at the very back…
Half an hour later, Chuuya and Dazai walked out into the busy street.
The restaurant workers and the owner lined up at the doorway, wide smiles on every one of their faces as they waved goodbye to the two youngsters walking away from the restaurant.
"How much did you pay them?" Chuuya questioned skeptically. He didn't understand human currency, but he could tell it's not a small amount. After all, he did nearly take apart the restaurant. The bodies of those idiot soldiers that tried to hack him with their swords were still piled up in the middle of the dirt road with white foams gushing from their mouths.
Dazai was humming as he twirled a brown leather pouch around his index finger. It was the same pouch he had swiped off those human soldiers when the werebeast threw him (and the table) into them.
Chuuya's blood boiled at the thought of being used by this bastard…again.
"Enough to let them buy a new restaurant," Dazai replied. "For mere foot soldiers to have so much money, it seems the higher-ups of this town are quite corrupted."
Chuuya couldn't understand the concept of money. Werebeasts never needed those kinds of things. They live pretty much like wild animals. They hunt for their food and make their own home. Whenever anyone needed something, they just share what they have.
Well, at least that's what it seemed to him anyways.
"Now what?"
"What do you mean?" Dazai was feigning innocence.
"You tell me, you're the one that made me come with you!"
"I never said you had to." Dazai countered, causing the vein on Chuuya's head to throb.
"Don't get me wrong, I'm just repaying the favour. The sooner we call it even, the sooner I can leave!" The werebeast grumbled. "You got something you want me to do, don't you?"
Dazai looked up to the starry sky, exposing his delicate pale neck wrapped up in bandages. His face was serious, lips slightly parted as he let out a long, thoughtful sound.
"Aaaaah…nope."
"What?" Chuuya blinked, wondering if he heard wrong.
"I don't have anything I want you to do."
"Then why the hell have me come along with you?!"
"Now, now, you're making a scene!" Dazai chortled, gesturing to the humans gawking at the odd Asian pair. "There's an inn just down the street! We should hurry before they run out of room!"
"Hey, bastard! Hold it!" Chuuya swore as he chased after the vampire.
In the end, there was only one room left—or that's what Dazai claimed anyways. That was fine with Chuuya since they still have unfinished business.
Once they've settled in their room, Chuuya was instantly on the lanky vampire.
"Explain yourself." He threatened dangerously.
Dazai sat on the soft bed, looking up at the werebeast standing over him with arms crossed over his chest. Sad that it's only at times like this that the werebeast would be taller.
Chuuya didn't know why, but the way the vampire's looking at him made his blood boil, so he slammed a foot into the side of the bed and loomed over the vampire.
"What games are you playing here? You can't expect me to believe you want me to follow you around without any reason."
"Of course not!" Dazai said in an offended tone. "You're going to be my dog after all!"
"…Hah?"
"If I tell you my leg is itchy, you scratch it! If I want to drink blood, you go kidnap a beautiful blond woman in her early twenties and bring her to me!"
CRASH
The entire bed was crushed into pieces as Dazai fell into the pieces of broken wooden frames and fiber fillings of the mattress. When he looked up, Chuuya has his foot hovering over the vampire's face.
"They say that vampires can live as long as their hearts are intact." The werebeast muttered, tilting his head to the side as murderous glint flickered within his eyes. "Want to test that out?"
"I hate pain, so I'll pass." Dazai sighed, putting both hands up in surrender. "You can't take a joke, can you? If you want a reason, you can say that it's to survive the war."
"What do you mean?"
"Since you were locked up pretty much all your life, you wouldn't know, but we're close to the final war."
"What final war?"
"The world war."
"World war?!" Chuuya gapped, unable to believe what he was hearing.
"A worldwide war involving every single species. The entire planet will become a warzone" Dazai spoke in such light-hearted tone it sounded like he was discussing the weather rather than an incoming apocalypse. "This is what will happen when you keep slaughtering and enslaving other species. Once they finally realize the peril they're in, every single species will see everyone and everything else as enemies that need to be eliminated, then a full out war will emerge."
"And human will come out victorious." Chuuya narrowed his eyes, still remembering what Dazai had told him. He slowly pulled back his foot, allowing the vampire to sit up. "You're saying this war will come soon?"
"In two years, to be precise." Dazai hummed. "When the war comes, nowhere will be safe. Money will mean nothing and survival will only be for the fittest. If you want to live, then we need to collaborate."
"I thought you wanted to die." Chuuya kindly reminded him.
"I rather die at the hands of a beautiful lady than some barbaric, racist animals."
"You want me to kill you off right now?" Chuuya gritted his teeth before pushing his anger back down. If what this vampire said is true, then he'll need this bastard alive. Being the only one that speaks his native language and the ability to keep Corruption under control, he needed Dazai.
And with only the ability to nullify other powers, the vampire needed protection.
It was a fair deal…given that everything he said was the truth that is.
"So, what will it be, Chuuya?" Dazai wore that knowing smirk on his face as he held out his hand.
The bastard was so certain the werebeast will take his deal. As much as Chuuya wanted to prove him wrong, he can't. He got no other choice but to accept this deal. He slapped his hand against the vampire's and held it in a brutal grip.
"If I catch you doing anything funny behind my back, I will put a stake through your stomach and roast you in the sunlight."
"Such a brat." The vampire grunted, causing a huge vein to throb as Chuuya applied all his strength into the handshake. The cracking sounds of breaking bones resonated throughout the room.
"GAAAH! You're such a brat!"
"You're a brat too!"
"Tell me that when you grow taller!"
"I'm only fifteen, I'm still growing! You're like what, fifty?!"
"I'm fifteen as well!"
~~~
"Wow…so that's how you and Dazai-san met?" Atsushi said in fascination after listening to his mentor's story.
Chuuya sat on the barstool, sipping on a glass of wine as he regarded the young tiger's excitement. "You're more invested in this plain old story than I am."
"I just think it's amazing." Atsushi smiled sheepishly as he scratched the back of his head. "I know what happened during the Dark Age, but hearing Chuuya-san's story made it feel more real."
"Well, it was hundreds of years ago." Blue eyes drifted down to the wine in his hand. "To you brats, it might as well be a fairy tale."
"But Chuuya-san and Dazai-san lived through it, right? In that case, it's not a fairy tale."
Chuuya looked at his disciple with a small hint of surprise before a smile lifted his lips.
"But why was Dazai-san in Switzerland?"
"To escape from his coven," Chuuya answered. "That shitty mackerel came from a strong coven of pureblood vampires. At the time, they ruled over Yokohama and got connections all over Japan. After deserting his coven, he had to leave the country."
"Yokohama?" Atsushi's eyes widened. "You don't mean…?!"
"Yes. The same place where Akutagawa came from. That coven has merged with other species over time and turned into one big organization. That is the Port Mafia."
"Then is it safe for us to be here?" Atsushi asked with worries lacing his voice. "What if the Port Mafia—"
"Calm down, kid." Chuuya chuckled at the frantic look on his face. "We struck a peace treaty long ago. They won't bother us as long as we don't bother them."
Atsushi let out a sigh of relieve, glad to hear everything was alright. "So then…was Dazai-san captured by the humans the moment he left Japan?"
"Capture?" Chuuya snorted as he remembered the ridiculous reason that landed the vampire in the cell as him. "That moron didn't get captured. He let those humans take him."
"Eh?!" Atsushi was dumbfounded. That was certainly not what he had expected, but then again this was Dazai they're talking about...
"He heard rumours about a werebeast with royal bloodline in the dueling ring, so he came to find me." Chuuya rested his chin against his palm. "The bastard planned everything out from the beginning, just so I would team up with him for the Dark Age."
There was more to that though.
What Dazai had planned wasn't only for the survival during the Dark Age. Even back then, the vampire was looking even further to the future. Dazai had sought Chuuya out for the creation of Double Black. With their combined powers, they were quickly made known to the world. It didn't matter what species they were. Whenever people caught wind that Double Black might be nearby, they will flee the vicinity, fearing to get caught up in their battle.
It was due to this that they were able to live peacefully right now.
After human came out victorious during the Dark Age, life became harsher for all other species. It was only in recent years that they were getting fairer treatment, but many were still slaves made to serve the humans. A good example would be that creep Tatsuhiko Shibusawa. How many different species suffered at his hands? How many were tortured, wishing for death that just wouldn't come?
These kinds of humans exist all around the world.
Dazai being Dazai, had another reason to form Double Black. Perhaps that’s his ultimate goal from the beginning. Everything he did was simply to pull free from his old coven—the current Port Mafia. With Chuuya by his side, Dazai has a chip to bargain for his freedom. It was thanked to this that they were able to form a contract
Everything went exactly as that arrogant vampire had planned.
The only thing Dazai hadn't accounted for was the change in their relationship…as well as raising two kids. These two things were probably the greatest surprises that scheming mind wasn't able to predict.
"Honey~ we're back!" An irritating voice sang as the front door flung open, revealing the tall and lanky vampire carrying multiple bags of groceries with his disciple in toll.
"Oh, you're back," Chuuya said disinterestedly as he continued to swirl the wine around his glass.
"Welcome back, Dazai-san, Ryuu!" Atsushi greeted as he hurried over to take the load off the vagabond vampire.
"Did you miss me, darling?" Dazai pounced towards Chuuya, only for the redhead to shove a palm into his face to stop his advance.
"Don't touch me!" Chuuya snarled with veins popping up from beneath his forehead. "I told you not to come near me for a month!"
"Chuuya! Don't be so cruel!" Dazai whined. "If I keep sleeping on the couch like this my back won't be able to take it!"
"And my back can?!" Chuuya snapped, now using both hands in an attempt to push the vampire away. "You kept going even when I told you to stop!"
"That was Chuuya's fault!" Dazai held his hands to his cheeks and swooned at the beautiful memories of last night. "What kind of man would stop when their mate is looking at them with those teary sapphire blue eyes, cheeks blushing in cherry blossom pink and hiccupping when—"
BAM
With a simple push of his hand, Chuuya slammed the vampire face-first into the floor. Thankfully, he still remembered that they're at home, so he held back on his strength. Otherwise, they'll need to replace the finely polished floor. This was one good thing about moving to a new home. If this was back in their dusty old manor, Chuuya wouldn't have cared.
When Chuuya's sharp eyes snapped up, he saw Atsushi and Akutagawa sorting out the groceries bags and putting the food into the fridge. Akutagawa looked like he couldn't care less (or rather, too used to the scene), while Atsushi was desperately pretending not to have heard anything and failing miserably. The kid's entire face was burning up and his movements were very robotic.
"So Atushi-kun, what did you two do while we're gone?" Dazai appeared right beside the younger weretiger, surprising the poor boy and causing him to drop the carton of milk he was putting away.
Dazai stood there with his hands in his pockets, smiling brightly as if he hadn't kissed the floor just seconds ago.
"O-oh, Chuuya-san was just telling me how you guys met!" Atsushi spluttered, eyes darting every now and then at Akutagawa, signaling for help. The young vampire spared Atsushi half a second of his precious time before he returned to whatever he was doing, completely brushing him aside.
This caused a vein to pop over the white weretiger. He'll remember this.
"Ah, brings back memories." Dazai sighed blissfully. "Chuuya was so adorable back then~"
"AH?" Chuuya glared daggers at his mate.
"I don't mean anything bad!" Dazai hurriedly explained. With his mate mad at him like this, anything he says would be equivalent to stepping on a landmine.
He only wanted to tease his mate a bit last night, but he went overboard and pissed him off instead. This was all Chuuya's fault for being so cute though. Not his.
"Atsushi-kun!" Dazai spun around dramatically to white-haired boy cradling the milk. "Next year will be your eighteenth birthday! You'll finally be legal to bond with Ryuunosuke!"
The carton of milk fell back onto the ground. Atsushi's face was burning up to the point where steams could be seen rolling off his skin. Behind him, Akutagawa had frozen up. In fact, it wasn't just him. Rashoumon seemed to have frozen as well with how stiff the fabric became.
This spiked Chuuya's interest as he set down the wine glass he had been playing around with.
"That's right!" The redhead agreed as he leaned over the table. "Have you two talked over yet? Vampire's thirst for blood will increase during sex so you should—"
"CHUUYA-SAN!" Atsushi screamed, mortified that the older weretiger was going to give him the talk.
"What, don't tell me you're getting shy over something like this?" Chuuya teased.
"W-we um…" Atsushi fidgeted, embarrass and uncertain of how to tell their mentors.
"We decided to take more time," Akutagawa said as he came to stand beside his lover. Atsushi looked up at Akutagawa. There was a small look of surprise on his face before that surprise melted into warmth. With his lover beside him, he regained his confidence and nodded firmly to Chuuya.
Chuuya looked back and forth between the two. He smiled at how uptight they were being.
"Take all the time you need." He waved at the pair. "Once you perform the bond, it'll be for life. It's normal to need time to think about it. Took me fifty years to finally decide to bond with this mackerel." He said, jabbing a thumb at his lanky companion.
"Chuuya, you wound me!" Dazai cried with a hand over his heart, yet his expression didn't have a hint of sadness for someone being hurt. If anything, his burnt umber eyes were twinkling in amusement.
"You two are worried whether or not you can stay together for the rest of your life, correct?" Dazai walked over to join own mate's side. He gently placed a hand onto Chuuya's shoulder. To his delight, the weretiger didn't throw him over his shoulder and allowed the contact. "The fact that you're worried about this means you won't have any problems. After all, werebeasts and vampires are destined to become mates."
"What do you mean?" Atushi exchanged looks with Akutagawa. This was the first time they were ever told of this. Since when did the two sworn enemies become destined mate materials?
"Oh, that's easy to figure out if you think about it," Dazai told them. "The difference in our body temperature is one. Vampires are creatures born in coldness. Unable to come into contact with sunlight or fire, it’s impossible for us to feel physical heat. Werebeasts, on the other hand, have unusually high body temperature due to their regenerative cells constantly being produced in their body.”
Dazai didn’t need to say the rest as the two already knew this. The huge difference in their body temperature was what made them want to be near each other in the beginning. It was this difference that made it so comfortable when they hold one another because it’s only with each other that they can feel the warmth of another living being.
"Werebeast's blood cells carry high regenerative properties. A single cell holds twenty times more nutrient than a normal blood cell. That's why their blood will taste sweeter and richer than other species. When we drink from them, werebeast's blood will help heal our body. And due to the werebeast's regeneration power, their body will instantly restore any blood that was lost."
"Meaning as long as we have food, we're an all you can eat buffet for them." Chuuya chipped in from the sideline. "There are many more examples…"
"But werebeasts and vampires can't see that." Atsushi finished for Chuuya.
"When you're trained to hate and kill from a young age, you will lose the ability to think rationally. When Ryuunosuke first met Chuuya, the first thing he did was to attack him~" Dazai chuckled, causing Akutagawa to flinch as if something invisible had slapped him across the face.
"Really?!" Atsushi gawked at his lover. He then turned to Chuuya who seemed so fond of the memory that he started cackling.
"I beat him up pretty bad." Chuuya snickered. "I even offered some blood to let him recover, but he said he rather die than to drink from me. So, I broke all four of his limbs, dislocated his jaw and just poured my blood down his throat.
"E-eeeeh…?" Atsushi looked back to Akutagawa whose face was scrunched up in what looked like shame. He suddenly felt very sorry for his lover…
"That is the hate drilled into young werebeasts and vampires." Dazai explained. "Chuuya and I were stray dogs in our clan. No one bothered to educate us. Ironically it's thanks to this that we're able to find out the truth."
At the mention of stray dogs, Atsushi looked over to Dazai. He knew why his mentor was an outcast, but he knew nothing about Dazai.
"But why?" Atsushi asked, unable to understand how these two strongest species fell so easily. "How did werebeast and vampires ended up like this?"
"…It's not hard to guess." Dazai shrugged. "If werebeast and vampires are allies, then this world will long be under their rule. Someone decided to break them up and turn them against one another, and they did for centuries to come. That's all there is to it."
"But—"
"While we're on this topic, allow me to tell you something more interesting!" Dazai cut off the young weretiger. "Atsushi-kun, what do you think is the most important quality between mates?"
"Uh…love?"
"Atsushi-kun sure has a pure teenage girl's heart."
"No! That's not—"
"The most important quality is rivalry!"
"…Rivalry?" Atsushi was dumbfounded. He did not expect that kind of answer.
"Your answer may be true for human, but for us it's different. Love alone won't maintain a relationship past a century. Humans wouldn’t know that, as their lives are too short. Atsushi-kun, has any of the other species you've encountered performed a mating bond?"
"No…" Atsushi replied after some thought.
During his travels with Chuuya and Dazai, he has met quite a bit of other species. He met agents working for the government, and then those that hid within the underground world. When he thought over all of them he had met, none of those species had bonded with anyone else. His and his lover's mentors were the only one he knew that bonded.
"For now you may love someone, but that love will eventually turn into boredom with time. Because of this, there are rarely any species that perform mating bond. After all, once you've mated, it'll be for life. Depending on how long they live, it could be for centuries or millennia. Even back when vampires and werebeasts were still thriving, they only mate to reproduce. Pure, sappy love doesn't exist in a fantasy world like ours. Those only exist within human's imagination. For us, a hundred years could pass in a blink of an eye and before you know it, the love you once felt got reduced to nothing.
That's another reason why werebeasts and vampires are suitable to become mates. Because not only are they lovers, they are also rivals. No matter how compatible their bodies may be, their personalities will never match. There's always one thing or another that will make them butt head, but that's what helps them understand each other beyond what pure lovers are capable of. That's the important quality you'll need if you want to be together."
"That's what you meant by destined?" Atsushi sweatdropped.
While his and Akutagawa's relationships were way better than when they first met, they still argue over a lot of things. Sometimes over small things, sometimes over bigger things…oftentimes their arguments ended up with them going at each other's throat.
There were many times where Atsushi couldn't put up with Akutagawa, and he's certain the vampire felt the same way. Yet strangely, never once did Atsushi ever stop loving Akutagawa despite all the issues going between them.
He supposed it's the arguments and fight that made them closer and able to understand one another so well.
Without it…
Atsushi's face turned green as he shuddered at the thought of a kind, patient and cheerful Akutagawa.
"What is it?" Akutagawa asked when he noticed his lover bending over the sink.
"I think I threw up a little…Ouch!" Atsushi cried when Akutagawa kicked him in the back of his knees, causing him to knock his chin against the hard counter. "What was that for?!"
"I just felt irritated." The vampire replied as if the answer is obvious.
"You!" Atsushi pounced towards his mate in an attempt to get him back, but the vampire easily side-stepped him. Atsushi already knew that's what the vampire would do. He knew him too well after all. He kicked his leg out, to trip the vampire, but Akutagawa had predicted his moment and already summoned Rashoumon.
"You two! Take this outside!" Chuuya bellowed when Atsushi bumped into the cupboard, causing the glass and ceramic tablewares inside to rattle.
"With this, life won't ever get boring, don't you agree?" Dazai said softly as he watched the two youngsters going at one another. Atsushi's arms have transformed into his tiger parts now.
"Not ready huh?" Akutagawa's word flowed back into Chuuya's head as he looked at the two's interactions. Chuuya wanted to laugh. He knew exactly what these brats were thinking.
Bonding was a sacred mating ritual that binds two people's lives together.
With the bond in place, the mated couples can feel one another at a higher level of intimacy.
The feeling of bond isn't easy to explain. If Chuuya had to describe it, it's like seeing a spark of light for the first time within a world of darkness.
The light wasn't blindingly bright or overly hot. It was a soft mellow light that carried only a tiny bit of warmth. Despite how tiny it is, its presence was impossible to ignore. That speck of light was so fragile and precious that it just makes him want to carefully cradle it within his hands and protect it.
Once a bond was formed, there was no way to undo it.
A bond was a blessing for two people in love. However, if that couple had fallen out of love, then the bond will become a curse. Despite no longer loving each other, they were forced to always be aware of the other's presence. No matter where they go, they won't be able to shake off the yearning in their heart to be reunited with the ones they never wanted to see.
Loving someone else will become impossible, as no matter how hard they try, they won't be able to shake off the longing to seek out their bonded mate.
The only way to break the bonding was through death. However, if one was to die, then the other will always follow shortly after. After all, to suddenly lose that speck of light and return to the world of darkness is a frightening process. It was enough to drive the one left behind insane.
Chuuya has seen failed examples of bond couples before. All those examples led to only one result.
Death.
When Chuuya looked at Atsushi and Akutagawa, all he saw was two dumb brats desperately trying to protect one another.
They love each other, so they were afraid of tying each other down. They were afraid that somewhere in the future, their partner would get tired of their relationship and wanted to leave, but can't because of the bond.
They were afraid that one day the other will hate them for it.
Hell knew how many times Chuuya wondered over that question. Even someone as smart as Dazai dragged it on for years.
In the end, the answer was always simple.
Neither of them was able to imagine a life without one another. Until they decide to bond, they will always yearn for something more, something that will connect them closer. It was just a matter of who will take that first step.
These two brats were more than ready, but that was something for them to figure out.
Chuuya grinned as he thought back to that night when Dazai extended his hand to him. It was the moment he decided to take that hand that both of their fate intertwined.
"…I suppose you can sleep in the bedroom again. I'm feeling quite generous right now, you better be grateful."
Dazai looked down at Chuuya in surprise before stars shone within in his eyes.
"CHUUYA!"
"Just this once!" Chuuya warned as Dazai nodded frantically with the face of a puppy that finally got the treat he deserved.
Chuuya couldn't stop the smile blossoming on his face despite knowing that this may very well be a part of his manipulative mate's plan. No, Chuuya is certain this is part of Dazai's plan to climb back into his bed. Why else would he be talking these bullshit lover qualities for no reason?
He wasn't going to believe his mate was genuinely doing it to educate their students. If anything, watching the two fretted over a problem that was never a problem had always been an enjoyment to this bandage wasting mackerel.
The worst part was, Dazai must have expected that he would figure it out. If Dazai wanted to keep something a secret, it stays a secret. No matter how long Chuuya had known him for, he would never be able to figure it out. The bastard didn't bother hiding his intention because he knew, either way, Chuuya would give in.
Sometimes, Chuuya hated how he could understand his mate so well. Many times he wondered just how he got bonded to such a bastard, yet he couldn't find himself to regret this decision. If anything, it was the best decision he had ever made—setting aside how he wanted to strangle the leech three times a month.
Well…he supposed he can follow through with his manipulation once in a while. He'll just have to properly beat up the damn mackerel the next time he tries pulling something like this.
"What did you guys get?" Chuuya asked as he crossed the kitchen to open the fridge. He let out a small, delighted hum when he saw how it was stacked full of food.
"It's been a while since we had some traditional food," Dazai said as he leaned over the weretiger and started picking out some ingredients out of the fridge. Chuuya's mouth watered when he saw three large packs of sashimi.
"Chuuya."
"Wha—hmph?!" The last half of the redhead's words became muffled when a Dorayaki was shoved into his open mouth.
"Eat that for now. I'll have food ready soon." Dazai purred into the redhead's ear, causing colours to crawl up the weretiger's neck as he nibbled on the overly sweet treat.
In that distant, he heard the sound of crashing coming from upstairs, but Chuuya couldn't bother to care. He sat back down on the barstool, slowly nibbling on his treat as he watched his mate grabbed a knife. Dazai was in an extremely good mood as he flipped the dangerous weapon around his fingers before getting to work…all while singing that dumb suicide song he came up with decades ago.
"Hey, shitty Dazai."
Dazai turned to see a Cabernet Sauvignon glass flying towards him. The vampire caught the glass by the stem, elegantly twirling it around the air to prevent the beautiful crimson fluid inside from spilling out.
"Drink that for now." Chuuya threw the vampire's word back as he took another bite into the Dorayaki.
Dazai swirled the thick blood around in the glass before bringing it up to inhale the sweet aroma of his mate.
Smiling, Dazai set down the knife and walked over to the weretiger.
"Chuuya." He called the name of his mate tenderly.
Chuuya looked up, meeting the vampire's soft brown eyes before he picked up his glass of wine. Smiles graced both of their lips as they tapped the rim of their glass against the other, creating a crisp ringing sound.
"To stray dogs."
♡❤Extra – "Osamu" ❤♡
"Chuuya-san."
"Hm?"
"I've been wondering for a while now…why don't you call Dazai-san by his given name?"
"Pfft!" Chuuya spat out the wine he was in the middle of swallowing. He coughed heavily, trying to get rid of the fluid that entered his lungs before looking over to his disciple.
"W-what's with that all the sudden?!" He spluttered.
Atsushi thought his mentor's face looked oddly red, but it was probably from the choking. He swiftly handed over some napkins which the older weretiger took.
"I was just curious…you and Dazai-san are together for so long but I've never heard you call Dazai-san by his given name."
"Who the hell would call that bastard's name?!" Chuuya snapped, bringing the wine glass back to his lips. Instead of slowly savoring the taste of the wine which was what he had been doing, he was gulping it down like water. "His name is Osamu! It's just lame! I'm surprised he even kept such a plain name for three hundred years!"
"Oh? I had no idea you felt that way, love." A dark voice suddenly whispered right next to his ear, breathing icy breath down the soft curve of his neck.
"PFFFFT!"
"Dazai-san!" Atsushi shouted in surprise at the appearance of the vampire standing behind the choking redhead. "Y-you were here?!"
"Yo, Atsushi-kun~" The vampire greeted merrily, but for some reason that smiling face brought chills down the young weretiger's spine. "If you’ll excuse us, Chuuya and I will have some adult talk.”
“Hey! Put me down, shitty Dazai!” Chuuya shouted as he was thrown over his mate’s shoulder. He trashed around, but the vampire didn’t loosen his hold as he went up the stairs and disappeared into their shared bedroom.
A long silence followed.
Atsushi stared at that closed door for a long, long time before only one thought came across his mind.
Tomorrow’s training with Chuuya will be hell.