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Entry tags:
your bones were meant to be my bones
Title: your bones were meant to be my bones
Fandom: Bungou Stray Dogs Gaiden
Character(s): Kyougoku, Ayatsuji, Tsujimura
Pairing(s): Kyougoku/Ayatsuji
Genre: Drama
Word Count: 1,000
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: Character death
Summary: Kyougoku Natsuhiko, detective.
Notes: Commissioned!
Ayatsuji Yukito is a serial killer.
There is no other way to describe him. Even if the deaths he causes are ‘accidental’, a man who knowingly causes the deaths of others for his own amusement can only be called a killer.
It’s impossible to know just how many he’s killed. He does not appear at crime scenes himself, rather relying on police data and news articles to pinpoint the culprit. Then the culprit dies an accidental death that could be attributed to something other than Ayatsuji’s ability.
Someone like that, a genius who pursues his own desire to solve cases heedless of the consequences… Kyougoku admires that. Perhaps it’s unethical to admire an abominable killer, but there is a beauty in being one’s true self that’s often stifled.
He’s in the entirely opposite situation. An ability user who can influence people’s minds is too powerful to be out of the hands of the government. He’s almost surprised they haven’t just killed him yet, but evidently they still find him a useful tool, or at least feel that someday they might have enough control over him to use him to his fullest.
In the meantime, his ability is not much help for a detective. It can certainly cause someone to confess - whether or not they truly committed the crime. At best, he can get uncooperative witnesses to be more forthcoming or defuse a violent situation. From then on, it’s only his own intelligence and understanding of human nature at work.
(Luckily, he has enough of both to get by, plus a helpful assistant/minder. That Tsujimura he works with learns quickly, and will be a good enough detective to work alone soon. He’s sure she’ll have to, sooner than she would like.)
Ayatsuji, a natural detective, continually evades capture, while Kyougoku, not meant for the role, submits to his chains. They couldn’t be more different, and yet.
If he ever tracked down that Ayatsuji, that man who he chases and admires all the same, what would he end up saying to his worthy opponent?
“Are you afraid to touch me, Tsujimura Mizuki?”
“Huh? Where’d that come from?”
“You know as well as I do that I could influence your thoughts with only a brief moment of contact, and you yourself would never realize your mind had been compromised. The ability that has you as my handler lest I go out of control and cause trouble for the government - don’t you fear it?”
“Well… I know what you can do, I’ve seen how scary it can be, but I don’t really worry about you doing it to me. Because…”
“Hm?”
“Because you’re just as warm as any other human being. So I’m not afraid of touching you like any other person.”
“Ka ka ka! You truly are utterly unique, giving an answer such as that.”
“Hey, you’re making fun of me, aren’t you?!”
“Not at all. Never allow yourself to change, even once I am gone.”
(For his part, Kyougoku has never used his ability on Tsujimura and doesn’t feel a desire to, even when she presents the opportunity by patting his shoulder or grabbing his arm. As warm as any other human being, indeed.)
The cliff feels solid beneath their feet, but that doesn’t change the sheer drop only a few steps away from where he and Ayatsuji are facing off. A fall from this height is absolutely unsurvivable.
“…Not bad. Almost decent.” Ayatsuji regards him coldly. “So now I suppose you expect to arrest me?”
“Bring a genius like you into custody?” Kyougoku laughs, a raucous ka ka ka that startles a nearby bird into flight. “Even if I thought that I could, subjecting you to that fate would be an insult to my rival.”
It’s clearly not the answer Ayatsuji expected, as it takes him a second to reply. “Then what have you chased me all the way here for?”
“Let me offer you a case.”
Ayatsuji raises an eyebrow, but says nothing.
“When I was a young boy, I used my ability on a murderer to send him into a dangerous location. He was the scum of the earth and there was no doubt he deserved what he got.” Even he finds it more difficult to talk about the surrounding circumstances, so he doesn’t. Only the ending is important here. “I didn’t tell him to die - but I knew chances were good that he would perish there. And, indeed, he died shortly thereafter.” Kyougoku smiles a too wide smile. “Now - tell me, who is the culprit in that case?”
He sees Ayatsuji hesitate, the meaning as plain to him as it is to Kyougoku: if I am a murderer, then so are you, and you cannot condemn me without condemning yourself. If you want to kill me for my crimes, then you must kill yourself for yours. You are not above your own ability’s ‘justice’.
“…You are the culprit, Kyougoku Natsuhiko.”
For a moment, there is no sound. No movement or cry from bird nor beast. Even the air is still.
“Ahh… so this is what it feels like to be marked for death. It doesn’t feel bad.” If there’s any difference, it’s too minute for Kyougoku’s senses. Instead, he only feels at peace, the invisible chains that he had dragged around for so long finally falling off him.
“Not as bad as I thought it would. But this is the first and last time I’ve been subject to Another.” Ayatsuji looks toward the cliff, expression unreadable. “It shouldn’t take long now - an accidental fall off these cliffs. The pain will be brief.”
Kyougoku reaches out and intertwines his fingers with Ayatsuji’s. Startled, Ayatsuji permits it-
“Shall we take control of our own lives for one last time, here at the end of them?”
“…it’s better than waiting to die. Very well.”
-even when Kyougoku uses that hand to pull the both of them over the edge.
Kyougoku’s last words on the way down:
“Your hand is warm…”
Fandom: Bungou Stray Dogs Gaiden
Character(s): Kyougoku, Ayatsuji, Tsujimura
Pairing(s): Kyougoku/Ayatsuji
Genre: Drama
Word Count: 1,000
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: Character death
Summary: Kyougoku Natsuhiko, detective.
Notes: Commissioned!
Ayatsuji Yukito is a serial killer.
There is no other way to describe him. Even if the deaths he causes are ‘accidental’, a man who knowingly causes the deaths of others for his own amusement can only be called a killer.
It’s impossible to know just how many he’s killed. He does not appear at crime scenes himself, rather relying on police data and news articles to pinpoint the culprit. Then the culprit dies an accidental death that could be attributed to something other than Ayatsuji’s ability.
Someone like that, a genius who pursues his own desire to solve cases heedless of the consequences… Kyougoku admires that. Perhaps it’s unethical to admire an abominable killer, but there is a beauty in being one’s true self that’s often stifled.
He’s in the entirely opposite situation. An ability user who can influence people’s minds is too powerful to be out of the hands of the government. He’s almost surprised they haven’t just killed him yet, but evidently they still find him a useful tool, or at least feel that someday they might have enough control over him to use him to his fullest.
In the meantime, his ability is not much help for a detective. It can certainly cause someone to confess - whether or not they truly committed the crime. At best, he can get uncooperative witnesses to be more forthcoming or defuse a violent situation. From then on, it’s only his own intelligence and understanding of human nature at work.
(Luckily, he has enough of both to get by, plus a helpful assistant/minder. That Tsujimura he works with learns quickly, and will be a good enough detective to work alone soon. He’s sure she’ll have to, sooner than she would like.)
Ayatsuji, a natural detective, continually evades capture, while Kyougoku, not meant for the role, submits to his chains. They couldn’t be more different, and yet.
If he ever tracked down that Ayatsuji, that man who he chases and admires all the same, what would he end up saying to his worthy opponent?
“Are you afraid to touch me, Tsujimura Mizuki?”
“Huh? Where’d that come from?”
“You know as well as I do that I could influence your thoughts with only a brief moment of contact, and you yourself would never realize your mind had been compromised. The ability that has you as my handler lest I go out of control and cause trouble for the government - don’t you fear it?”
“Well… I know what you can do, I’ve seen how scary it can be, but I don’t really worry about you doing it to me. Because…”
“Hm?”
“Because you’re just as warm as any other human being. So I’m not afraid of touching you like any other person.”
“Ka ka ka! You truly are utterly unique, giving an answer such as that.”
“Hey, you’re making fun of me, aren’t you?!”
“Not at all. Never allow yourself to change, even once I am gone.”
(For his part, Kyougoku has never used his ability on Tsujimura and doesn’t feel a desire to, even when she presents the opportunity by patting his shoulder or grabbing his arm. As warm as any other human being, indeed.)
The cliff feels solid beneath their feet, but that doesn’t change the sheer drop only a few steps away from where he and Ayatsuji are facing off. A fall from this height is absolutely unsurvivable.
“…Not bad. Almost decent.” Ayatsuji regards him coldly. “So now I suppose you expect to arrest me?”
“Bring a genius like you into custody?” Kyougoku laughs, a raucous ka ka ka that startles a nearby bird into flight. “Even if I thought that I could, subjecting you to that fate would be an insult to my rival.”
It’s clearly not the answer Ayatsuji expected, as it takes him a second to reply. “Then what have you chased me all the way here for?”
“Let me offer you a case.”
Ayatsuji raises an eyebrow, but says nothing.
“When I was a young boy, I used my ability on a murderer to send him into a dangerous location. He was the scum of the earth and there was no doubt he deserved what he got.” Even he finds it more difficult to talk about the surrounding circumstances, so he doesn’t. Only the ending is important here. “I didn’t tell him to die - but I knew chances were good that he would perish there. And, indeed, he died shortly thereafter.” Kyougoku smiles a too wide smile. “Now - tell me, who is the culprit in that case?”
He sees Ayatsuji hesitate, the meaning as plain to him as it is to Kyougoku: if I am a murderer, then so are you, and you cannot condemn me without condemning yourself. If you want to kill me for my crimes, then you must kill yourself for yours. You are not above your own ability’s ‘justice’.
“…You are the culprit, Kyougoku Natsuhiko.”
For a moment, there is no sound. No movement or cry from bird nor beast. Even the air is still.
“Ahh… so this is what it feels like to be marked for death. It doesn’t feel bad.” If there’s any difference, it’s too minute for Kyougoku’s senses. Instead, he only feels at peace, the invisible chains that he had dragged around for so long finally falling off him.
“Not as bad as I thought it would. But this is the first and last time I’ve been subject to Another.” Ayatsuji looks toward the cliff, expression unreadable. “It shouldn’t take long now - an accidental fall off these cliffs. The pain will be brief.”
Kyougoku reaches out and intertwines his fingers with Ayatsuji’s. Startled, Ayatsuji permits it-
“Shall we take control of our own lives for one last time, here at the end of them?”
“…it’s better than waiting to die. Very well.”
-even when Kyougoku uses that hand to pull the both of them over the edge.
Kyougoku’s last words on the way down:
“Your hand is warm…”