PSL (closed)

[foundfate]

[The shop had finally settled again. It was a bit of a relief, because it hadn't anchored to a world in nearly two weeks, and Watanuki's food stores had started to run low. A shopping trip would be in order, mostly to replenish his nonperishable before the shop set out looking for another world in need of his help.

Usually Watanuki could guess when a move was about to happen, but sometimes it happened out of the blue. Like this last move, which had come so soon after arriving in the previous world. That usually meant that his services were in dire need and that people's souls were calling out to him, even if they didn't quite know it themselves yet. Watanuki would just have to wait for them to come to him.

His first visitor, at least, wouldn't take too long to get there. Watanuki always had a sense of when someone was to arrive, and as soon as the shop's gates had opened and revealed itself to the busy streets of Yokohama he had felt the impending arrival of a customer. It was enough to pique his interest, because he didn't usually get a visitor on the same day after a shop move. Someone was very perceptive, it seemed.

By the time his guest would arrive, Watanuki had already set up some tea in one of the sitting rooms. The summer was at its end, and the cool breeze felt nice enough that Watanuki had decided to open the movable doors to reveal the backyard, which was still bathed in the greens of summer. They could stay cool without the need of an air conditioner that way.

From there, he waited. He had a feeling that his guest was a particularly clever one, so he felt sure that they would find their way to the sitting room on their own.]

Comments

[foundfate]

Eh? But I-

[Watanuki clapped his hands, and a pair of girls ran into the room. They were careful to avoid touching Dazai at all, but they scooped up Atsushi and dragged him out to the front yard. He was kicking and screaming while the girls chanted "let's play~" over and over again.

Welp.]

They will keep him occupied. What can I do for you?

[neverwashere]

[He had to clap a hand on his mouth to keep himself from laughing, waving goodbye as the twins dragged Atsushi off. Dazai didn't mind the avoidance of touch - those two were probably Maru and Moro, and they were the ones keeping the barrier running.

(He still thought that was an ability. He had yet to see the girls too closely, how doll-like they were in moments of stillness.)

His expression grew somber, however, once Atsushi was out of earshot.]

Same thing I asked for last week. [His tone was wry.] With a penalty for the exchange of information should anyone wish to know the details. The question will come from me, with you to arbitrate during the face-to-face discussion.

Is that suitable?

[foundfate]

So it sounds like you want two wishes granted. The first is "Give Atsushi the ability to control his tiger form." The second is "anyone who finds out about the previous wish is punished for it". Is that correct?

[He wanted to make sure he understood Dazai clearly before setting the terms of both wishes.]

[neverwashere]

Sounds about right.

[So. What's that added price gonna be?]

[foundfate]

You already know the price for the first wish. As for the second...hm.

[He was quiet for a moment as he thought about what would be an adequate price for secrecy. He had a few ideas in mind, all prices that would be a fair exchange, but before he could name any of them his gaze was suddenly drawn upward, to a point right behind Dazai.]

Ah. There is someone listening in.

[If Dazai looked behind himself, however, he would see nothing there. But he would feel someone's presence.]

[neverwashere]

[He narrowed his eyes. Why did he have an inkling that might be Atsushi?

...I see.

Well. Best get it on, then.

[Price accepted, if that was what it was.

Never mind how his gut clenched.]

[foundfate]

You're not interested in what the third guest has to say?

[Watanuki specified 'third' there to make it clear that he wasn't referring to Atsushi.]

He seems insistent on having you listen to him.

[neverwashere]

...third?

[Uncertainty trickled into his words, and he shifted to look at the space behind him properly. No, he couldn't see anyone there, just empty space. Perhaps he could reach out, try to at least grasp what his senses were telling him was there, in spite of evidence to the contrary..?]

[foundfate]

[When he reached out, his hand would feel a cold spot, as if the temperature suddenly dropped by 10 degrees. That was the only indication that anything was there.]

He says 'Don't do anything reckless.' It seems he doesn't trust me to do right by you.

[neverwashere]

[At this point, Dazai was well and truly alarmed.

Look, he didn't believe in ghosts. Didn't dare to believe that a certain someone watched over him - there was only one place the two of them could end up in the afterlife, and Dazai would honestly prefer to see his own soul destroyed than face being roasted fod eternity.

The way Watanuki said that though.

Hesitantly, Dazai shifted his hand, trying to find the spot where room temperature met icy air.]

By any chance, does he have red hair and a scruffy poorly-shaven jaw?

[He dreaded hearing the answer, too.]

[foundfate]

[To answer that question, Watanuki smiled and took a more roundabout way of explaining.]

You already know of the ability I gained from the former shop owner. My ability- the one I was born with- is "to see that which other people cannot see".

[Once again, he was breaking magic down into a way that could be understood via abilities, and that explanation was meant to cover his ghost-sight and his future-sight. Still not 100% accurate, but close enough for their purposes.]

[neverwashere]

[He'd make note of that - it was important - but really.]

Not that I'm ungrateful for the explanation, but that didn't answer the question.

[For all he knew, it was someone else who wanted to screw him over. Could whatever Watanuki saw even lie?]

[foundfate]

[Possibly, but that wasn't what was going on here. Watanuki didn't blame Dazai for not believing him, though. Most who couldn't see what he saw didn't believe him either.]

Right now he's grumbling about the last four years and how he had really hoped you wouldn't turn out to be an alcoholic. But this strange, scruffy man won't share his name. Could you tell me, perhaps?

[neverwashere]

['Scruffy' was a word he'd used earlier. In hindsight, he could've altered his description for a proper test - ah, but old grief tended to trip him up, more than he'd care to admit.

But a note on being an alcoholic? Drinking wasn't a topic they'd strayed close to, today and last week.]

I could. If you describe him to me in detail.

[It was probably telling that he asked for the appearance first over the message. If this encounter turned out to be real, he'd clean out his stock of sake when he got home later.]

[foundfate]

You don't believe me.

[It's said with no tone of offense, but more as a stated fact. Like he has been doubted before and has come to expect it. But it's fine. He was saying all of this for a reason, after all.]

He's dressed plainly but carries himself like a man of conviction. His eyes show a heavy past, but every time he looks at you a fire sparks up in them. He's a protective one, someone who has gone into rivers and positioned himself just right to prevent 'unfortunate accidents'. Someone who values your life much more than you do, clearly.

Even with a hole through his heart, he still cares.

[Suddenly a rush of wind went past Watanuki's face, and a small cut appeared on his cheek. He didn't move in that moment, but afterwards he reached up to touch it, only for his fingertips to come back bloody.]

Ah. Perhaps that last bit was too much.

[neverwashere]

That's...

[More for him to not get his hopes up, really.

That description and that last part. Oh, indeed, that was where the person he was thinking of was shot, and the sudden cut that appeared on Watanuki's cheek startled him out of the morose spiral he was about to embark on.]

Oda Sakunosuke.

[At some point, he'd balled his hands on his knees. Dazai took a breath to steady himself, feeling strangely light-headed. Maybe it was shock. Certainly helped with the suspension of disbelief - he'd have known if someone like Watanuki knew Odasaku.]

He was... is? [He shook his head and looked at the floor.] He's a dear friend of mine.

[How his throat hadn't closed up in spite of the growing ache there was a mystery.

He closed his eyes, if only for a moment.]

...maybe I should've brought sake.

He thinks I'm being reckless, does he?

[Hearing his own word choice was bizarre, given the context.

He also still dreaded knowing the answers, equal to how much he craved them. Ahh, such was the nature of his cowardice.]

[foundfate]

He thinks a lot of things. He's a very opinionated ghost, which he really shouldn't be, because those attachments to life are what keep him from passing on to be reincarnated.

[The way Watanuki spoke, it was as if this was a common problem.]

But the point is, he's there. And what's more, he's involved in the price of your second wish.

I will grant your wish of keeping the details of the first wish a secret. Nobody will be able to speak a word of it to anyone, until you tell someone else who is not yourself or me. Once you speak of the details of your wish, then that information can be freely exchanged. But until then, nobody will ever know it.

But in exchange, you cannot know the message Oda-san is trying to get me to pass onto you. As long as your price remains a secret to the world, his wishes will remain a secret to you.

[The way the entire room suddenly went ice cold was probably a good sign that Odasaku did not appreciate being used as a pawn like this.]

[neverwashere]

...ahh.

[His lips curved. The sharpness of his teeth showed. It wasn't a smile.

Figured that even when he was literally making a wish, Dazai still might not be able to attain what he wanted for himself.

So. How much did he need to keep the origins of Atsushi's inexplicable control a secret?

Paranoia was a cruel master.]

I'm assuming his message is not related to work.

[foundfate]

You can assume what you like about it.

[Sorry Dazai. No details until the deal was made or not-made.]

Of course, the choice is up to you. If you don't want to be left not knowing his message, you could risk that someone might find out what you have wished for. I don't make a habit of telling my client's business, you know, so it would have to be forced out of me anyway.

[neverwashere]

[Tsk. Really, Watanuki, what kind of negotiator did you take him for?]

I'm well aware.

Shall we? With all due apologies to Odasaku.

[It wouldn't be the first time he disagreed with Oda on certain directions.

For now, he could still crush the burgeoning hope of 'what ifs' that threatened to take root in his heart. What was a chance at happiness to a man who'd given up on attaining it?]

[foundfate]

Of course.

[And then he held out a hand to Dazai.]

The bandages, if you will?

[neverwashere]

[The smile was painfully fixed onto his face as he shed off his clothes, starting with his bolo tie and the buttons on his vest. The methodical activity was always something to focus on that was decidedly not the exposure he signed up for, and the added cost of not hearing Probably-Odasaku's message.

(It wasn't that he thought Watanuki was lying. Rather, he just couldn't process that entire exchange in full right now, close as it was to grief.)]

I don't suppose you have a privacy screen or something?

[He extended his leg and tugged up the hem of his pants. Yep, more bandages. Unless Watanuki didn't mind being subjected to a lazy strip show that rivaled his own?]

[foundfate]

You can use the room next door.

[He pointed to the wall, which was one of those sliding walls that could also function as a door.]

You could have asked from the start too.

[Not that he was honestly complaining or anything. Nor was he oogling Dazai's shirtless self. It was what it was, and he didn't seem particularly take by nor uncomfortable about Dazai's half-nudity.]

[neverwashere]

And here I thought you wanted a show. Ta.

[A flying kiss and a wink. Humor was a fantastic coping mechanism.

The coat, vest, and shirt went with him to the side room. He'd take in the furnishing - an added distraction - as he stripped, maybe taking his time to undo his bandages. There was something to be said about the strange awareness this'd be the last time he had to take these off, of parting with the comfortable familiarity he found in the simple texture of gauze.

Streams of white covered the floor when he was done. Putting on his clothes afterwards was such an alien experience. His skin, finally able to breathe, would thank Watanuki for it. Not that gratitude was the first sensation Dazai had to contend with - no, that was reserved for the sheer discomfort in walking out with his neck uncovered above his collar, the cool air pebbling his skin.]

Here we go.

[Don't mind the mass he just dumped by Watanuki's feet. That was just Dazai's latent spite of everything in general working to derive stinging amusement.]

[foundfate]

[A pile of bandages was fine. Watanuki merely held out his hand, palm-up, and the bandages slowly lifted up and started to roll in on themselves until they made one tight roll in his hand. Hm. Must have been some wish-granting magic.]

Very well. The price for your wish has been paid.

[Then, finally, Watanuki got up off of his couch. The bandages stayed in his hand, and he carried them with him as he walked over to the door that led to the hallway.]

Follow me. The item I need to grant your wish is in the store room.