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To say Atsushi wasn't shaking out of his skin would be an understatement; after all, this was his first time within the Port Mafia walls, let alone Mori's office. For Dazai, no tension or issues were physically revealed, his body language as frighteningly relaxed as expected to be with that suspiciously leery posture, back proper and straight as a whip while his hands hang loosely in the beige jacket symbolizing the new man he's become. Clearly being at their place of work had no burden on Akutagawa or Chuuya, although the latter would be lying through his teeth if he were to deny the burning feeling in his stomach at being here in this very location with his partner for the first time since he split, sneaking glances at him as they trekked the never-ending corridors Osamu still vividly remembered how to navigate by pure instinct.
Every sad-eyed stare the executive would attempt to steal was always met in return, followed by a teasing smirk but warm, reassuring eyes. His facial expressions were never honest, but with Chuuya, Dazai's eyes only knew how to speak the truth. Nakahara didn't realize he had been holding his breath until he felt a heavy weight lift off his chest at the sigh he released once they were stood in a horizontal line outside the office doors of the Port Mafia boss, letting go of all his pent up tension before the slick son of a bitch on the other side of that wall could smell it.
Atsushi was no doubt obvious in the expression of his fears as he trembled like a leaf, hugging his arms around himself as if he were cold, but he tones it down a notch when Akutagawa swats the back of his head, whisper-snapping, "You fool, get ahold of yourself!"
"Well, can you blame me for being a little nervous?! This is the man who once tried to sell me on the black market, if you couldn't remember!" Atsushi fires back just as aggressively, their voices still reduced to harsh whispers that had Chuuya wanting to roll his eyes. God, how did people ever put up with him and Dazai when they mirrored them to a tee?
"And what? You think he plans on shipping you off now? Yes, Jinko, you are so right; he even took the time and effort to haul Chuuya, Dazai, and I away from work so we could throw a little going away party! WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU-?!"
"Okay, okay, cut it out, you two," Mori chuckles with eerie pleasance, the duo having not realized that Hirotsu had politely opened the door to beckon the group inside. Atsushi immediately tenses at hearing his voice so unexpectedly, arms being thrown around Akutagawa's neck who already had the collar of his dress shirt in his fist while he spat in his face. Both wore stupidly flabbergasted expressions, stood frozen like statues in the doorway all the while Chuuya and Dazai casually strolled in and greeted Hirotsu kindly, which had happened in the several seconds that had passed before Ryuunosuke snaps out of his trance and drops his rival to the floor with a bitter 'tsk', folding his arms and walking on in as if Nakajima's wailed protests and aggravation went deaf to his ears.
Mori was suspiciously blissful today, and it appears that didn't just seem worrying to Chuuya, the hard expressions Soukoku exchanged indicating they were once again co-exiting on the same wavelength. Anything that brings that bastard to joy is never without the expense of somebody else, and Nakahara really has his doubts that they were summoned here over something cute Elise did...
"Good afternoon, Boss. What is it you care to discuss?" Chuuya asks with the uttermost respect, Dazai disregarding the way his blood ran cold whenever he had to witness such a disgusting portray of loyalty to a man too sick and vile to ever be worthy of his precious chibi's praise, unable to mask away the irritated expression revealed on his face when he goes so far as to bow on one knee, head lowered and hat pressed to his chest.
Chuuya, a literal god, shouldn't be worshipping Mori when it's meant to be the other way around. But in no universe could Dazai ever pry his soulmate away from the only true family he's ever known, no matter how deeply their love runs for each other, and it's clear that Mori relishes in that fact, which is made exceptionally obvious now when he stares his former prodige dead in the eyes and demands Nakahara kiss the ring on his finger before they begin. Osamu simply responds to the gesture with an ugly smile, but neither of their gazes thawed out even the slightest, hands now tightened into fists at his side as an oblivious Atsushi moves to stand hip to hip with him, awkwardly watching their partners do as asked.
Akutagawa is massaging away the tickle in his throat as a wet cough threatens to escape closed lips while he follows behind Chuuya to stand alongside the ADA members once again, and although the threatening glance he gave Atsushi when he began rubbing soothing circles on his back sung a murderous mantra, the mafioso found himself shifting idly closer to him, leaning the side of his head against the weretiger's while the younger held his weak body with an arm now around his torso, hacking into the palm of his hand as pressure pulsed in his forehead. That choking was all that filled the space for a quiet moment until it finally begins to settle, which is when Mori, chin resting against the shelf-like position he made with his fingers, smiles and finally gets down to business.
"I'm pleased you were all able to arrive here in timely fashion. I hope Fukuzawa doesn't mind me borrowing his children for a while," Mori comments in a joking manner despite the dark undertones that are always ever present in his voice. "But this will be good for us, so I don't see how it could be of any issue."
"Which is what, exactly? You've been doing quite a bit of stalling for someone with such little time to be wasting. Or perhaps you're just not as busy a man that I took you for."
Dazai is certainly to blame for the wide eyes now staring at him as he spoke without filter, making up for all the things he wish he could've said to his former superior in days where his mouth dictated how long he had to live. Akutagawa and Chuuya's jaws were practically to the floor with how stunned they were, Atsushi even appearing as if he were going to have heart failure while he watched his mentor casually take a seat with the smuggish of smiles on his lips.
"But do go on," one leg swings over the other, leaning back in his seat with folded hands that quite mimicked how a boss of the mafia would present himself. "I'm rather talented at killing time, amongst other things..."
You could almost call Mori proud with the inward hum of a laugh he expressed in response, but disappointment was also a key term to note at the way his eyes fall to a close at having let him get away. A prime successor he would have been, but then again the inevitable cause of his early death. For as much of a loss losing Dazai was, at least it earned him a few extra years in pity points.
"Very well then. If Dazai is so impatient, I suppose it would be best to skip the casualties and dive straight into business as ordained," Mori replies dejectedly, a short sigh falling from his lips as he now rises from his seat of power rather unexpectedly. "Akutagawa, Atsushi," he commands, and immediately the duo are standing up straighter, mimicking the pose of a soldier within the presence of their commander without the salute.
With his hands folded behind his back like so, Mori makes his way toward the door in leisure pace as Hirotsu now holds it open for him, Akutagawa and Atsushi immediately turning towards each other as the warning bells started to go off in their heads. However, Akutagawa maintains his professionalism to the best of his ability, and so he casually clears his throat and begins to trail after his boss at a healthy distance, not waiting for his companion nor looking back to make sure he was trailing along. It was his choice to make whether he wanted to join them or not, and while Ryuunosuke was more lenient toward the safer option of obedience, he wouldn't push him so much as he usually does in this instance.
Making any negotiations with Mori is just as slippery as doing so with that of the devil, and while Akutagawa does bear a healthy amount of respect and loyalty toward his superior, a part of him wanted to keep Atsushi as far away from the bastard as possible, especially when his intentions with him haven't always been the most pure. Maybe not beckoning the weretiger to follow along was him clinging to a last sliver of chance that he'll leave, plenty of distance far from the blood and toxicity that stains the very air of these towers that someone of his purity should be protected from. Of course, he hears the careful footsteps start to gently trail behind him, because Akutagawa really shouldn't expect anything less from someone as hopelessly stubborn as the Jinko.
And if he took a couple of 'brief pauses' to cough and catch his breath on their way so he would eventually end up walking shoulder to shoulder with the boy of both his nightmares and dreams, well that was no one's business but his own...
It felt as if the trio had been walking for eternity, although fear and anticipation can slow down time with minimum effort. They were still inside Port Mafia for the entire duration they travelled, but given the size of the twin skyscrapers, it should have come to no surprise that the inside is just as big. As much as he is tiger, Nakajima couldn't help but feel like a tiny lab rat dropped into a maze, expected to fend for himself as everybody else observes and analyzes his every breath.
While Atsushi had been visibly nervous from the start, he started feeling the real nausea when Mori stops outside what appeared to be his doctor's office, having to pull out a key from his pocket to unlock the much smaller door in comparison to his actual headquarters. It didn't stand out in the slightest amongst all of the other unidentified rooms lining off the corridors; in actuality, the rest were much more noticeable compared to this one, for it appeared to be no more than the physical of a janitor's closet from first glance.
Despite the risk of Rashomon slitting his throat, which quite frankly could be a much easier death than whatever Mori has in store for them in there, Atsushi links both arms around one of Akutagawa's when the door finally swings open so he was hugging on to him, which thankfully only earned him an irritated scowl in reply. He made no move to shrug him off or yell, instead enduring it and pretending it wasn't there despite his previous childish reaction.
Inside the small room, much to the boys' surprise, someone appeared to be already present. A woman who only looked to be in her mid thirties was already sitting on the clinic bed casually, round glasses resting on her slender nose and business-style attire decorating her body. Even if she wore something totally different, the maturity of her facial features was enough to assume she was somebody intelligent and professional, but then again, why would someone like that be in any way associated with the mafia?
"Amélie Badeaux, I apologize for the wait," Mori sincerely extends, the woman obviously foreign if her physical ethnicity wasn't already a dead give away. "These are two of the four boys I was telling you about. I decided it would be best to experiment with the both of them first, for I suspect we'll receive a lot more of a hassle out of our second lot of patients."
Atsushi's grip on Akutagawa had only tightened in hearing the word 'experiment' leave the former surgeon's mouth, fingers digging into the leather sleeve and more than likely the skin of the man's arm as both their eyes widened in surprise. The odds didn't seem too bright in their favor as for this moment, especially if whatever this is they are doing would stir a rise out of Soukoku, and while Nakajima genuinely contemplated the decision to simply run out of here like a bat out of hell and never look back, his legs felt stiff and frozen as they watched their lips move in hushed conversation. Even on days where he feels strong and confident, that meek little boy he once knew never fails to leave no matter how much has changed since then.
The weretiger couldn't help but release an audible whimper as his eyes fall to a temporary close, but Akutagawa is quick to throw a, "Just shut your mouth and behave" at him, which in Akutagawa's dictionary translates to 'stay quiet and do as they say then everything will be alright'. He was probably trying to appear all tough and brave, but given how fast and breathless those words were spoken, it was clearly obvious he too was just as rattled by whatever the man had in store. However, there lay little fear in those eyes, probably because a man who doesn't flee from the thought of death is only afraid of the tortures of living. Seeing him not break and fall victim to what change awaits them in the next five minutes gave Atsushi just the tiniest pinch of courage, because so long as he isn't trapped alone anymore, somehow things always feel like they'll turn out okay when someone is by his side to share the burden.
"Now then, let's get started, shall we?" Mori turns to both boys now who immediately flinch in reflex, putting an appropriate distance between them before each moved to stand shoulder to shoulder in the middle of the room as they were commanded, the atmosphere heavy and intense with uneasy tension. Mori stands off to the side, expression smug but naturally so as he allows his special guest to rise and take a short study of her subjects, adjusting the frames of her glasses as she circled around the pair with eagle eyes.
Atsushi kept glancing over at Akutagawa out of the corner of his eye, but the latter had his gaze glued to the floor the entire time, posture stiff and clearly uneasy. Amélie finally stops when she is standing directly behind the two, which made them way more uncomfortable given that they couldn't see what the woman could be doing if not directly in their line of vision. Atsushi swallows thickly, and the guest gives Mori the OK with a silent nod. Knowing this would be his cue to enlighten his volunteers, he steps away from the wall so he is standing in front of the duo, although a fair distance away compared to his companion.
"There's no need to fret or panic, this won't hurt a bit. Once it is complete, the only pain you'll be left with is hundreds of more questions that you will not even know where to begin. But don't worry, all will be cleared up very soon. Amélie, if you will."
Atsushi and Akutagawa both hold their breath as a bright shade of magenta began to glow around them, a recognizable aura they knew right away was of that of an ability. This time, Nakajima's glance in the man's direction was eagerly met, both of them unaware of what was happening to them but finding the slightest sliver of comfort knowing they were together in this, just as the recurring pattern seemed to follow since they met that fateful day three years ago. Holding his gaze was warm, just as warm as the hand Akutagawa grabbed on impulse that burned like hot fire compared to the icy cold his fingertips always felt. Amélie was smiling proudly to herself behind their backs, and now so was Mori at the signal that all was going smoothly. The last thing Akutagawa and Atsushi could remember seeing was a bright flash of white light the moment they tore their gazes away and turned to look ahead once more, eyes snapping shut while the color vanished as fast as it had been activated.
Shin Soukoku were stunned as they blinked away the blotches in their vision, and the first registration of what had happened came immediately from Atsushi as he felt something drop in his arms, barely catching the twenty pound weight that landed in his possession. Mori's eyes were blown wide, which meant that the sight was no doubt shocking to earn such a genuinely stunned reaction out of him. All Atsushi could see was the back of a head of what he presumed to be was a toddler, and while the weretiger was more confused than ever as to what had happened and why some random kid appeared as a result, he realized that perhaps there was a point he was missing when Akutagawa immediately faints upon looking the tiny thing in the face, eyes rolling back into their sockets before his body strikes the ground the same time Atsushi calls out his name through the panic.
"Ryuu!" he shouts, tone worried but reverting to more of an anger as he deviates his attention to Mori next and follows with an aggressive snarl, "What did you do to him?!" A younger him would undoubtedly be appalled by how protective he's become over Akutagawa over the years of working together, especially in learning how that street goes both ways, but that's what growing up is all about; letting go of unnecessary conflict and evolving into someone you can be proud of. Maybe throwing your life on the line for a (former) murderer isn't the most ideal path to walk, but it's sure as hell an interesting one, and definitely a much sunnier place than his previous.
Atsushi jumps at the hand that now reappears on his shoulder once again, but strangely enough no power is activated as Amélie looks him in the eyes and beams, "Congratulations, papa. It's a boy," with a snicker to follow, one that lacked bite. His heart no doubt skipped a beat even at such five, simple words, and yet those five, simple words appeared to be authentic to its core, for when Atsushi turned the child no more than three years old around in his arms so he could finally see beyond the back of their head, his breath hitched in his throat when he saw such familiar eyes boring into his very soul; purple and yellow before stripped of their innocence.
His fingers were trembling as he slowly raised one shaky hand to card through Akutagawa's short bangs that rested against the pale skin of his forehead, black dipped in white as it hovered over his fragile shoulders. Much like his father, the boy wore nonchalance like it was the only emotion he knew how to feel, although upon receiving the loving act of affection from the sun of his universe, eyes fell to a close as a ghost of a smile tingled at the corner of his lips.
This was no doubt their offspring, as far as science can even begin to make sense of any of this. But Mori said he would explain, hopefully twice so Akutagawa could listen once he recovers from his temporary heart failure. Perhaps it really was their safest bet to select the two of them first over Dazai and Chuuya; lord only knows what chaos would ensue with another Osamu running around Yokohama.
Oh my god, this was really starting to feel legit now. And could Akutagawa PLEASE get off the goddamn floor so he's not handling this alone! He basically just gave birth and already he felt like a single parent! But child support from a Port Mafia's back account... a pleasant thought.
"Well, that went more splendidly than I had been expecting. Great work, Amélie; your services will be heavily compensated before the sun should rise," Mori chuckles ecstatically, Atsushi finding himself hugging the baby's face into his shoulder in a protective grasp with how the boss's eyes failed to stray from the child they apparently just brought into the world, especially so given that he was not yet dressed beyond nude. The orphan couldn't help but feel grateful that he was a boy, for he'd hate to imagine the fantasies that would be running through the pedophile's mind if it were a little girl. "If you would be so kind, I'd greatly appreciate it if you could enlighten the tiger boy as to what happened just now."
"But of course," Amélie agrees easily, taking a seat on top of the bed once again as her long legs dangle off the side of the leather cushion, leaning back against her hands as she had done before like the woman didn't just bring to life an actual human being. "I won't go over the top with the details, but my ability entitles me to be able to produce the offspring of any two people, regardless of their sex, age, or medical conditions. All I have to do is touch both parents at the same time and concentrate enough for it to activate, and given how many seconds I let it run its course, that determines the baby's age. For example, I held on to you and your partner for exactly 3.5 seconds, so therefore the little guy is three years and five months old. But obviously it would have to be more than just a light tap on a couple in unison, because the DNA and such has to have enough stability to process through the magic. It truly is a gift of miracles!"
"I... But how..?" Atsushi replies absolutely flabbergasted, staring back and forth between Amélie and his... son, while fighting off the lightheadedness that threatened to send him off with Akutagawa. "Then why? What purpose does this serve?"
Amélie shrugs cluelessly, to no surprise. Obviously she wouldn't have any indication as to what Mori has in mind, or perhaps she simply doesn't care for it. "Whatever your motives are beyond here is out of my hands. I have a clinic back in Paris to take care of full of many infertile mothers and homosexual couples in desperate plea of a family, so I don't intend this visit to outstay my welcome," she conveys with a clear enough attitude, a tone most would fear speaking in around Mori if they knew even the slightest whisper of his reputation. But given that she's become Mori's miracle worker, the woman can pretty well say whatever it is she wants so long as her end of the bargain is being maintained.
Clearly, Atsushi shouldn't have expected a clear answer out of the man either, for all he did was guide him out the door with his gloved hands placed on both his shoulders, assuring him as he practically pushed him out, "Your top priority should be caring for the little one, which are my only intentions as of right now. Get the boy situated with the necessities, and I'm sure by then Akutagawa will have awoken, refreshed and open-minded. Until then, I have no further business with you, so please do show yourself out. If you get lost, don't be afraid to ask somebody to escort you out, they've all already been made well aware of our special guest."
The weretiger didn't buy any of what Mori said, not even for a second, but of course those were orders he would have needed to obey anyway. It should be made obvious to anyone that Atsushi would take care of this child with or without Akutagawa's help; after all, no one knows the tortues of being an abandoned, unloved orphan better than the two of them. Even if this surprise had been sprung on them without fair warning, that didn't mean Nakajima wasn't going to supply this child with all the affection in the world that he would have once grovelled on his knees for just a taste of once upon a time.
Mori's final words is simply, "Take care of yourself, Atsushi," before a door is being closed in his face, his partner still resting inside. But he's certain that once Soukoku are in for a surprise of their own, he definitely won't be long rising with all of the commotion that's sure to follow. But that's not of his concern, at least for the moment. As Mori had said, all of his priorities currently are solely dedicated to getting the little one situated into his new life, all the while bracing himself for whatever motive Mori seems to have in doing this...