Dazai smiles slowly, eyes slowly starting to glint red under the moonlight. āYou seeāthereās a new woman in my life,ā Dazai muses, taking another drag. āFor almost a year now.ā He taps off some of the excess ash, crushing it under foot.
āAnd she has a bone to pick with you.ā
Dazaiās laugh has no mirthāit doesnāt even sound human.
And then Dazai calls out the name, softly, under his breathāand Tachihara feels the bottom fall out of his stomach.
āTurn around, Michizou.ā
Tachihara stares at the ground, the pools of golden light that shouldnāt be there, not in the middle of the night. āNo,ā he croaks, all of the blood draining from his face, āthatāthat doesnāt make any sense.ā
āYou arenāt even going to look her in the face and tell her youāre sorry?ā Dazai tilts his head.
Tachihara turns around, hands shaking, and when he sees the figure behind Dazai, he falls to his kneesāa mockery of the prayers he was offering before.
But now, he isnāt lifting his hands to God.
Heās staring into the eyes of death.
āShinigamiā Chapter 7, by CataclysmicEvent.