Withering moon lit rose

Chapter 23

"I'm sorry..." She replied quickly, Yosano was running out of conversation topics. "Also what happened to Akutagawa, he was in that room with Atsushi earlier. Did he ever leave?" She tilted her head to the side slightly, however fell due to her body slowly becoming incredibly tired.

"I'm unsure, I'll go check." Kunikida slowly made his way into the room, he was quickly greeted by the sight of a tightly curled up Akutagawa. His face contorted slightly, a nightmare by the looks of it. Kunikida shook him lightly.

"Hey kid..." He muttered just loud enough for Akutagawa to catch. He bolted upright immediately on edge, he slowly calmed down when he recognised his surroundings.

"I doubt it's comfortable on the floor there, how about resting on one of the beds in Yosano's room?" Akutagawa questioned why the man was being kind to him, but nonetheless accepted the offer of a comfortable bed. When Kunikida walked back into the section where he'd left Yosano, she was slumped over on the desk she was sitting on earlier. Guess we all need sleep, Kunikida thought. Just as Kunikida was going to check on the boss and Ranpo there was a knock on the main door.

They were back.

Kunikida quickly and quietly made his way to the door, expecting to find three men but was slightly confused at the sight of two. But he didn't ponder on that for too long as Dazai was having to rely on Chuuya for support with each step. He let the pair make their way inside, with the seats in the main area being taken up by the younger members; they all made their way into the infirmary.

Akutagawa had taken up the bed on the far end. Dazai collapsed onto the first bed available.
He grunted in pain at the injuries he'd sustained, but before either man could do anything to help him he rapidly began to pull at his bandages. Once done he left a pile of dirty bandages on the floor, his shirt half unbuttoned so he could get to the ones on his neck. Chuuya and Kunikida stared at him in shock, he'd always been reluctant to remove his bandages in front of others.

"What?" He questioned as he began to pick at the dried blood on his wrists, from either old injuries self inflicted or from the torture.

"Stop it!" They both exclaimed, grabbing an arm each. Chuuya and Kunikida stared at each other in shock. The same words, the same actions, the same response.

"I didn't realise you both wanted to be so intimate with me?" Dazai jokes, both men jolted away in response to his crude joke. They both blushed. He began to laugh but ended up coughing harshly as a result. Kunikida handed him a glass of water which he quickly gulped down before collapsing back on the bed, arm over his face. He truly was exhausted, as well as guilt ridden.

"This might not be the ideal time to ask but what happened? Where's Atsushi?" They heard a quiet ruffle of covers at the end of the room. Kunikida assumed Akutagawa had begun to stir at the sound of their voices. He beckoned Chuuya to follow him outside the infirmary so they could speak and not wake the younger. Dazai appeared to be unconscious from what they could tell so left him be.

"Sorry, I let your subordinate sleep in there. He was collapsed on the floor where Atsushi had been sitting earlier. I thought it cruel to leave him there." Chuuya waved his hand in dismissal at the man's concern.

"Thank you for making him more comfortable. But as for what happened, well they tortured Osamu as you can see. Naka-" Chuuya recoiled slightly at the surname, all he could picture now was the woman's face. "I mean Atsushi willingly traded himself in for his safe return." Kunikida nodded in acknowledgment.

"I'll inform the police in the morning so we can immediately begin a search to locate him." Kunikida turned as if he was just about to do that, but Chuuya clasped his wrist. "You can't!" He said it slightly too loud that the others in the next room stirred slightly.

"Why not? He's a member of the ADA. It's our responsibility that he returns to us safely." Chuuya tightened his grip around Kunikida's wrist.

"You just can't. I'm sorry, I can't say anymore, just know what he did... He did it for everyone..." Chuuya loosened his grip and then proceeded to pull out the letter Atsushi had given him earlier.

"These are his final words, I just don't know how I'm supposed to give them to him." Kunikida raised an eyebrow at Chuuya's words. "Him? I would have thought if he wrote a final letter it would have been to Kyoka. Those two are like brother and sister to each other." Chuuya shook his head, he knew Kyoka hated final letters. Kouyou had sent her one once, when he'd asked Dazai about it he'd said she burnt it. She never even opened it. Thankfully, Kouyou didn't know of this.

"No, it's for Ryuunosuke." Kunikida's mouth dropped open at the sound of this. "Why him? They both hate each other?" Chuuya smirked at his response.

"You don't know your co-worker very well do you?" Kunikida was going to retaliate but held his words in his throat, this would be an argument better had with the younger in person.

"I don't know how I'm gonna be able to give him this. The last thing I did was take away the person who meant most to him, I don't know how I'm gonna be able to face him." Chuuya's shoulders drooped at his current predicament. Kunikida then proceeded to put his hand on Chuuya's shoulder.

"I doubt he'll hold it against you." Chuuya sighed in agreement.
What the pair was unaware of was Akutagawa stood beside the door of the infirmary, hidden in the shadows where only Dazai would be able to see him. He was managing to hold back a sob which threatened to spill out, and the pair began to move towards Fukuzawa's office after finishing speaking.

"So you heard?" Dazai muttered, his face still covered by his arm.

"Atsushi is gone, his last words were to you. What are you gonna do?"