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Atsushi could not believe what was happening to him right now. The mission was a regular mission. He, Kyoka, and Kunikida were to stop a human trafficking gig. The plan was this: Kunikida and Atsushi were to infiltrate the heavily guarded mansion under the guise of potential patrons and distract the employees. They would go in at separate times so as not to arouse suspicion. Kyoka was to sneak into the holding room and free the prisoners.
That was a solid plan. Atsushi was confident it was going to work, but alas, it didn't. On his way to the mansion, a guard recognized him despite his immaculate disguise. He quickly got captured, but something strange happened. While struggling with the guards, they shoved an odd liquid down his throat. It made Atsushi slowly lose consciousness. As he was blacking out, he smirked because if Atsushi didn't contact his team about entering the mansion in 5 minutes, they'd start a rescue plan.
Now, back to the present, he is slowly waking up and realizing he's in a dollhouse. Atsushi looks around in confusion. Everything looks so giant outside the dollhouse window. Did Lucy get an ability renovation or something? No, she couldn’t have. He was looking out a window. Lucy doesn’t have windows. He looks around and everything looks very gothic. Where was he? Why was he here? Who would he encounter?
Atsushi sighs and decides to inspect the place. Everything looked brand new and expensive. The black bed he is currently sitting on is luckily very comfortable. But strangely there is removable plastic on the bed.
Everything in the small bedroom he was in is gothic. He got off the bed and looked out one of the windows. He was definitely in a dollhouse. The room outside was… odd. It was clean and modern but still had a gothic charm to it. He notices a display shelving unit that is full of porcelain ball-jointed dolls. They looked expensive. He admires the beauty of them until he notices that one of them looks just like Dazai. The one next to it looks just like him.
A shiver goes up his spine. Someone was obsessed with the two of them. Was Atsushi in danger? Was he regressing to being classified as ‘not human’? Atsushi doesn't want that and so he journeys out of the bedroom. The house is so far keeping the same gothic theme. He’d say he’s kind of lucky in a weird, messed-up way. He’s never had the privilege of living in such a nice, luxurious house.
After exploring for a bit, he’s deduced that whoever put this together has a lot of money and genuinely cares for his well-being. He found tiny edible snacks in the fridge and kitchen cabinets. They were all preserved food. Sadly, the fridge isn’t a real fridge, so he couldn’t have good food, but at least he had food.
Atsushi nibbles on some slightly oversized crackers. They were high-quality crackers. They were sweet, salty, and had the right amount of crunch. He ended up finishing the crackers. He was becoming a little less worried about his situation, but he'd still like to figure out how to get out of here.
Suddenly, the sound of a door opening perks his ears. He rushes to the window closest to the outside room’s door and sees… “Akutagawa?!”
Akutagawa looks at Atsushi with a curious look. “Hm, it seems like the weretiger is awake,” he says.
Atsushi notices that Akutagawa is holding something in his hands. He wonders what it could be. Could it be something to torture him with? Or maybe it was food? He doesn't know and doesn't want to know. Right now, figuring out his situation and how to get out of it was more important.
“Akutagawa! What's going on?!” Atsushi shouts from the dollhouse window.
Atsushi needed answers. Even though Akutagawa would probably rather die than tell him the full truth, he’d still ask anyway. While lost in thought, Akutagawa walks up to the window and scares Atsushi a bit. He feels a little intimidated. He's about as tall as Akutagawa’s head.
“I found you thrown away in a trash bin. At first, I thought you were a mere doll, but as soon as I picked you up, I noticed your heartbeat.” Akutagawa informs.
“O-okay, but why am I in a giant and very elaborate dollhouse?!” Atsushi questions.
Akutagawa sighs. “Well, I thought it would be a little cruel to put you in a hamster cage, so I ordered Higuchi to buy the dollhouse. Gin put some snacks in there in case you get hungry,” he answers.
Atsushi sighs and rests his arms on the window sill. He was worried about being cruel? Never. There has to be something more to this than what Akutagawa is letting on. “Can you let me be free? I know that these types of dollhouses have a lock on them.”
Akutagawa shakes his head. “I apologize, Jinko, but I would like to have fun with you. See this as my revenge for last time.”
Atsushi glares at Akutagawa. Revenge? What happened? He doesn’t recall any moment before- ah. He remembers now. Akutagawa wanted revenge for starting a fight in a grocery store. Atsushi groans at this realization.
“Revenge?! For what?! You started it!” he cries.
Akutagawa rolls his eyes. “Whatever. Anyway, I have things to do and if you cooperate I will be gentle.”
Atsushi gives Akutagawa a puzzled look. Akutagawa is acting unusual today. Is this even real? Did an ability user transport him into an alternative dimension? He’s starting to get a bad feeling about this. He didn’t know what Akutagawa was planning; he was placing some stuff on the nightstand next to his- very luxurious- bed. He assumes it’s some torture device due to the plastic crinkle sound coming from Akutawagawa’s fiddling. He eventually comes back to the dollhouse.
“Now,” Akutagawa unlocks the dollhouse and grabs Atsushi. He brings him close to his face. “I had Higuchi sew little doll clothes for you. I like my dolls to be clean and nice. Firstly, you'll need to take a bath.” Akutagawa states.
Atsushi violently blushes. “N-n-now wait a m-minute! B-bathe m-m-”
Akutagawa covers Atsushi's mouth with his index finger. Atsushi is very worried and confused by this new and puzzling information. Does Akutagawa play with dolls? This thought made him laugh a little. There is no way! But, he did have that odd collection of very expensive-looking dolls. Akutagawa’s eyebrows furrow at Atsushi’s laughter.
“Would you rather I drown you in the toilet?” Akutagawa threatens. Atsushi bites Akutagawa's finger.
“Ow! You'll pay for that with your life! Do you not understand what I said about cooperation and being gentle?!” Akutagawa glares at Atsushi.
In truth, Atsushi had a little crush on Akutagawa (not like he'd admit that to the man himself). He liked the thought of being pampered by his prince uncharming, but being nude and having the man wash him was very- he doesn't know how to describe it. He didn’t know how he’d react. Would Akutagawa make fun of him? Would he give him an insecurity? Akutagawa takes his finger off Atsushi's mouth.
“Fool, are you truly stupid enough to fight me? I could crush you,” he warns.
“But the promise is preventing you, remember?” Atsushi reminds him.
“I could always have Higuchi do it,” Akutagawa says. Atsushi sighs.
He has no more fight left in him. This bath was going to be the death of him. He’d rather take Akutagawa’s drowning option now that he thinks about it. It sounded less troubling.
“C-can I at least bathe myself? I mean, you don't have to do it for me…” Atsushi asks shyly.
Akutagawa sighs. “And where would you do that, Jinko? Where would you get soap and hair products?” he asks.
“Hair products? Like, hair spray? I didn't know hair spray could be used in the bath...” Atsushi says.
Akutagawa goes silent for a minute. He is genuinely surprised by that counter-question. Does Atsushi not know what shampoo and conditioner are? Is the secret to his soft, fluffy hair just his tiger’s fur? Or is Atsushi taking him for a fool and mocking him?
Akutagawa clears his throat. “Shampoo and conditioner? Have you heard of it?” he asks softly, the shock of this newfound knowledge still affecting him.
Atsushi thinks for a moment. “Oh! I've seen those lying around in the bathroom at my place! I thought they were just fancy body soaps!”
Atsushi's revelation catches Akutagawa off guard. “...Y-You’ve never even read the bottles…?” Akutagawa questions softly.
“No, it's Kyoka’s stuff so I don't mess with it.”
The weretiger was going to kill him quicker than his lung disease. “Wow… how pathetic. You still need to be babied.”
Before Atsushi could say anything, Akutagawa placed a finger over his mouth again. Atsushi dreaded the very short walk to Akutagawa’s bathroom. All he could do at this point was prepare himself for whatever came next.
“Okay, Jinko. I guess I have to teach you how to bathe properly.” Akutagawa says with a sigh. “Strip,” he demands while placing Atsushi in the sink.
“But-”
“Do you want me to rip those clothes off your body? Your bones might break.” Akutagawa threatens.
Atsushi sighs and hesitantly strips. While doing so, he feels Akutagawa’s heated glare. Atsushi throws his clothes onto the sink counter. He sighs and hopes this ends quickly.
“Good.”
Akutagawa turns on the sink, making sure it was in the warm setting. He plugs the drain blocker in. They wait silently for the sink to fill up to Atsushi's waist height. Atsushi felt weird. The embarrassment of being naked in front of Akutagawa has slowly faded and in its place realization set in. He now just realized how strange this situation truly is. He, Akutagawa's most hated person, is doll-sized and is standing in his sink, waiting to be washed by him. Why was Akutagawa doing this? Atsushi knew Akutagawa would most certainly not tell him and it annoyed him slightly. Once the water was at the perfect height, Akutagawa turned it off.
“Now, it looks like I'm going to have to teach you how to bathe properly.” Akutagawa mocks.
“H-Hey! I'm not stinky and dirty all the time so I would say I bathe pretty well!” Atsushi argues.
Akutagawa rolls his eyes. “Whatever, I don't care. Your dandruff proves otherwise.”
Akutagawa puts some body wash on his hands and lathers it up. He picks Atsushi up and starts rubbing it into his skin. This shocked Atsushi. He didn't expect Akutagawa of all people to be so gentle. He rubbed soap on Atsushi's upper body so gently and strategically that he couldn't help but close his eyes. The cleaning felt more like a relaxing massage.
“With how happy you look I'm surprised you're not purring like the filthy cat you are,” Akutagawa says.
“Tigers can't purr... And I'm not some filthy cat!” Atsushi argues.
Akutagawa rolls his eyes. “Whatever, beast. You smell like a trash can and you certainly are dirty. Maybe look at the water when you bathe sometime.” he scoffs.
Atsushi sulks. Why must Akutagawa be so frustrating? Even when he is being “kind” he's infuriating. Falling in love with this horrible man is Atsushi's greatest tragedy. He’ll never forgive himself for the crime.
“Alright, Jinko. Struggle and you perish.” Akutagawa says while grabbing a fancy-looking 2-in-1 shampoo and conditioner bottle
“Firstly, you want to cleanse your hair,” he instructs while gently massaging the hair product into Atsushi's scalp with his thumbs and index fingers.
Atsushi closes his eyes again and enjoys the sensation. The scent of lavender helps him relax even more. He'd stay tiny forever if this is what awaits him every week. This was the best thing to ever happen to him in a long while.
Akutagawa stops massaging the hair products into his scalp and holds Atsushi's sides. “Now, we have to rinse it,” he instructs.
He gently pushes Atsushi down and works the soap out of his hair. Atsushi was enjoying this way more than he should. Maybe this was a new mind control method that the Port Mafia was using. If it was, it was working quite well.
“Lastly, you scrub the disgustingness off your legs yourself,” Akutagawa says while handing Atsushi a cap full of body wash.
Atsushi pouts a bit but understands the reasoning behind it. He- not as pleasurable- scrubs the filth off his lower half. He couldn’t help but feel a little saddened by the fact that the bath would end soon.
Once he was done cleaning his lower half, Akutagawa picks him up and drains the sink. He brings him up to a towel and dries him.
“Since you're a new doll for my doll collection, I will personally have you wear only the finest of clothes,” Akutagawa says.
“W-wait! I am not staying with you! I have a job and have people who care about me! I'm a living human being!” Atsushi cries.
“I do not care, Jinko.” Atsushi sighs knowing he can't escape.
Ranpo will probably figure out his location soon enough. He might as well enjoy his time here in the meantime. He thinks for a moment and remembers the doll of himself that sits on a shelf.
“Why are you doing this anyway? You already have a doll of me.” Atsushi asks.
Akutagawa stays quiet for a moment. A light blush dusts his cheeks. He looks like he's trying to hide something. Sighing, he answers, “Because you….. interest me, Jinko.”
“Interest? What do you mean by that?” Atsushi asks.
“Maybe you should stop asking questions and shut up permanently. Dolls don't talk.” Akutagawa deflects.
“How about you be the one to shut up?” Atsushi growls.
“Well, I'm not the one who is doll-sized, am I?” Akutagawa retorts.
Atsushi groans. Nobody is winning this fight. Knowing he won, Akutagawa places Atsushi on top of a dresser and goes to retrieve small dolly clothing. He looks through the outfits for a little while and finally finds one to put on Atsushi.
“Listen up, Jinko. No struggling lest I break your bones. Our promise doesn't keep me from injuring you.” Akutagawa threatens.
Atsushi rolls his eyes. He's already given up a while ago so this threat was meaningless. Akutagawa comes back over to Atsushi.
“Arms up and no talking back!” Akutagawa demands.
Atsushi rolls his eyes and complies with his demands. Akutagawa smirks in victory. This was getting a little annoying for Atsushi.
“I see someone has finally learned their place.” Akutagaway mocks.
“The Agency will find me soon and I would rather not visit Yosano's office afterward,” Atsushi informs him with a glare.
“Whatever, I don't care.”
Akutagawa gently dresses Atsushi in a blue yukata that looks alarmingly like the one he owns. It’s almost like the crazed man studied him in his spare time.
“W-w-what is this all about?” Atsushi asks with a light blush.
“I don't have any yukata-wearing dolls, so you'll be my first. I'll place the rest of the clothing in your little doll house. You can change into those every day.” Akutagawa informs.
Atsushi sighs once more. “What is your obsession with dolls? And why are you being so gentle with me?” he questions.
“I like the look of ball-jointed dolls; they're elegant and pure. I'm only being gentle with you because I don't want bruises on my dolls. Any blemishes that aren't the original intent of the doll are ugly and need correcting. I would rather not have to go through the trouble of putting make-up on you. You'd look exactly like a pig wearing makeup.” Akutagawa replies.
Atsushi bursts out laughing. This was some kind of nonsensical joke to him at this point. There is no way this is his Akutagawa!
“You think this is some kind of joke, Jinko?!” Akutagawa shouts.
“O-of course I do! It's so out of character that it's absurd!” Atsushi says in between fits of laughter. A
Akutagawa blushes in embarrassment. “Why you…”
Atsushi is too busy laughing to realize that Rashoumon is creeping up behind him. Reality set in once his limbs were bound and he was slowly approaching Akutagawa's face.
“A-ah! I'm sorry! I uh-”
“Silence, Jinko! You'll be punished for this heinous act!” Akutagawa gives Atsushi a soul-devouring glare.
“Hey! What's heinous about laughing at you?!”
“Laughing at me is punishable by death!” Akutagawa informs. Atsushi's jaw dropped. “The Agency will find you and bring you to justice, Akutagawa!” Atsushi threatens.
“I'll just kill them.”
Atsushi rolls his eyes. “My friends will never be beaten!” Atsushi says proudly.
“We have an orbital laser.”
“Don't kill my friends!” Atsushi pleads.
He knows this is a bluff but will play along anyway. He wants to see where this conversation will go. It’s getting very interesting. If Akutagawa was willing to bluff about this then what other things would he say?
“We're enemies, idiot. What do you expect me to do? Have a tea party with them and settle a childish debate? I'll honor my promise by ordering the Black Lizard to end them individually with the laser in my stead.” Akutagawa threatens.
Atsushi sighs. He wonders why Akutagawa likes arguing so much. It's bad for your health, mentally and physically. Akutagawa dismisses Rashoumon and Atsushi falls into his hands.
“So cruel…” Atsushi sighs while lightly glaring at Akutagawa.
Akutagawa freezes and his face turns pink. Atsushi's yukata was sliding down his body and revealing his shoulders and collarbone, the way he sat was cute and his left leg was peeking out, and the cute little glare on his face killed Akutagawa.
“Ahem, Jinko… fix it.” Akutagawa demands softly.
Atsushi gave him a confused look. “Fix…?” Atsushi was looking for something to fix but didn't see anything.
“Jinko, fix your clothes. You're being indecent.” Akutagawa informs the poor, clueless weretiger.
“I don't see a problem with it…”
The way Atsushi was acting made Akutagawa even more flustered. Atsushi was cluelessly looking around for any problems and was getting visibly frustrated. It was taking a lot of restraint to not kiss the little weretiger and coo over him. If Atsushi did one more cute thing, he’d lose it.
“Uhm, I don’t understand what you want me to do…” Atsushi says while looking up at Akutagawa.
This marked the beginning of something Akutagawa was very unfamiliar with. The way Atsushi looked up at him was adorable. It was too much for him. He could not take the cuteness anymore. He wasn’t strong enough and it pissed him off. Atsushi will pay for this.
“Aku-”
He kissed Atsushi’s little face. Atsushi was stunned. He did not expect this of all things! He blushed and froze. What was he supposed to do in this situation?! His crush was kissing him suddenly! It made the butterflies in his stomach fester and chew on his insides. He felt like he was going to explode. Is this even real? Is he dreaming? He hopes he isn’t.
Akutagawa’s lips were rough but soft at the same time. Atsushi was caught off guard by this. He expected the mafioso’s lips to be chapped and uncomfortable to kiss, but he was proven wrong. Even though this kiss was awkward, he was easing into it. It felt nice to have something go his way for once.
Akutagawa pulls back and his eyes widen. His already blushing face turns 10 shades darker. He roughly places Atsushi in the dollhouse and covers his face with his hand. He cannot believe he just did that. How could he?! Now the weretiger was going to rip his mind and heart to shreds.
“Uhm, Akutagawa… Just now…”
“Shut it, Jinko!”
Atsushi sighs. He knows that Akutagawa feels vulnerable right now and wants to respect that. He stands up and slowly walks up to Akutagawa. He lightly tugs on the distressed man’s coat.
“Akutagawa, listen to me. I genuinely was not expecting you to kiss me so suddenly, but I want to admit something to you. I… I like you too… I hope that kiss just now was truly how you felt about me…” Atsushi admits with a blush.
“Y-you do?”
There was silence for a while. Akutagawa and Atsushi were stuck looking at each other, faces flushed and full of bewilderment. They both were still trying to come to terms with their newfound knowledge. The silence was slowly gnawing away at them. They both wanted to do something, but couldn’t.
Eventually, Atsushi was the first to do anything. He grabbed Akutagawa’s index finger and gently kissed it. Akutagawa flinched a little bit. Atsushi kept hanging onto Akutagawa’s finger while looking him in the eye. This was too cute for Akutagawa.
“Yeah…” Atsushi replies while giving Akutagawa’s finger one last kiss.
Akutagawa looks away. He's unsure of what to do next. This situation was foreign to him. Should he act normal or change a little? It's a tricky situation and it annoys him to no end. Maybe he'll wait for Atsushi to do something and then latch onto whatever he does.
Atsushi stays in the same position for a little while, unsure of what to do next. Then he lets go of Akutagawa's finger and looks away shyly. He waits for Akutagawa to do something. This leads to more silence.
It was awkward for both of them; their idea of confessions was very different from what they were experiencing now. Neither of them didn't know what to do. It was nerve-wracking silence….
Until the door to Akutagawa's room opens. They both look in the direction of the door. Higuchi enters the room and feels the odd atmosphere. She chooses to ignore it.
“Akutagawa sir, Dazai is here to retrieve the weretiger.” Higuchi announces.
“Tell him that he can take him from my cold, lifeless hands,” Akutagawa replies.
“But sir, he and the other Agency members are here. It would be best to give him back. We don't want to cause trouble.” Higuchi says.
Akutagawa sighs. “Fine,”
Higuchi nods and leaves. Akutagawa picks Atsushi up and walks over to the nightstand. He digs through a bag of jelly beans and takes a couple out. He hands them to Atsushi.
“Small, pathetic creatures such as yourself like jellybeans, right?” Akutagawa asks.
Atsushi sighs. “I may like jellybeans, but that doesn't mean I'll let you get away with making fun of me!”
“What are you going to do, Jinko?” Akutagawa asks in a mocking tone.
Atsushi smirks. He climbs up Akutagawa's shoulder and kisses him on the cheek. Akutagawa freezes for a moment. Atsushi climbs back down into Akutagawa's hand and eats the jellybeans he was given.
“You may be smarter than I originally thought, Jinko.”
Atsushi smiles victoriously. He's glad his mission failed. He probably wouldn't have been able to get closer to Akutagawa if it hadn't.
“You know, I don't mind staying here a bit longer. Let Dazai turn me back to normal first though.” Atsushi says.
Akutagawa rolls his eyes. “Fine…”
With that being said, the two left the room and ended up having a conflict with the ADA anyway. The conflict wasn't their typical kind of conflict though, rather it was about who had Atsushi rights. Atsushi didn't have a say in any of this.