Dear whoever
Starring at the bed canopy for the entire night got boring pretty fast. Dazai noted, mind going numb as he looked listlessly at the creases and crinkles of the green drapes. Huffing, he straightened, knocking some of the books he had read to pass the time to the side. His feet settled soundlessly on the carpeted floors as he gathered his stuff and shuffled into the bathroom.
He quickly got ready before sneaking out of the dorm, movements as silent as he was trained to be on missions.
The dungeon’s cool air made his body shiver involuntarily as he made his way through the corridors and up the stairs. He could spot paintings just starting to come to life as he passed them. From the air and the light shining through a couple of windows, it was just barely past 6 am.
Fingers digging into the package and letter in his grasp, he soldiered on. Chibi would no doubt be feeling lonely without him, he thought with no small amount of amusement.
The Owlery, if he remembered correctly, was situated at the top of a spiral staircase, a drafty tower that housed the school's owls. It took a couple of detours to find his way, but he got there eventually. As he climbed, the scent of hay and the soft coos of sleeping birds greeted him. Pushing open the creaking, heavy wooden door, he stepped into the dimly lit space, his eyes immediately seeking out the familiar form of his tiny companion.
He found the object of his quest almost immediately. Chibi was perched on a ledge, looking rather comically grumpy. The bird turned its head away as Dazai approached, clearly still miffed about being left behind. Dazai smirked at the sight.
"Good morning, Chibi," he greeted, his voice low and teasing. The owl didn't respond, maintaining its aloof posture.
"Still upset, huh?" Dazai leaned against the wall, arms crossed. "I knew it. You’re too weak for this package.” He held up a small parcel, wrapped in brown paper and tied with twine. Chibi's head snapped around, eyes narrowing at the challenge. “A tiny thing like you could never-“
With a huff, the owl fluttered down from its perch and landed on Dazai's outstretched arm. "I thought so," Dazai murmured, stroking the feathers of Chibi's head. The owl cooed softly, biting at his fingers before turning its attention to the parcel.
"Alright, alright," Dazai chuckled, placing the package in front of the bird. "Don’t get your feather’s in a twist.” He pulled out two pieces of parchment and a couple of books from his bag.
Settling down on a nearby bench, he began to write the first letter.
Dear Odasaku,
If you’re reading this, then that means that my bratty new owl did his job.
I haven’t thrown myself off the astronomy tower yet, you should be proud. Hogwarts is... curious, to say the least. I took the liberty of sending you some books, I saw them and instantly thought of you. It was more of a spur-of-the-moment thing, really.
The magical theory here is interesting enough, though I’m afraid practical application is still a bit tricky.
I hope you’re doing well, not missing me too much, are you? I’m sure your kids are more than enough to keep you on your toes.
Say hi to Ango for me, I'll write more to both of you when I have the chance.
(Ps: Feed Chibi a treat for me, will you? The books are almost twice his size.)
Take care,
Dazai
He folded the parchment and attached it to the books, wrapping them carefully before tying them to Chibi's leg. The owl hooted, turning away as much as it could while still holding out its talon. Still, Dazai could see how pleased he was to have something to do.
He hesitated, before writing.
Hey slug,
Did you like my owl? His name is Chibi Junior, isn’t that neat? He's probably shorter than you, but I’ll have to see you again to check. How’s everything going on your end?
Remind me to bore you with the details of my mission some other time.
Stay out of trouble, or don't, I don’t care as long as you make Mori’s life hell while I’m not there to chip in.
Ps: Could you spare C.J one of your hats? He would look silly without it.
O.D
He sealed the letter, wrote the correct addresses, and attached it to Chibi's other leg. "Make sure these get to where they need to go, alright?" The owl gave him a look that seemed to say, ‘Do you doubt me?’ before taking off into the early morning sky.
Dazai watched until Chibi was just a speck in the distance, a frown twisting his face, now that he was alone.
As the sun climbed higher, casting long shadows through the stone arches, Dazai stood and made his way back to the castle, he could already hear the hustle and bustle of the students starting up. Today would be another long day, he supposed.
Making his way through the corridors toward the Great Hall, the anticipation of breakfast mingled with a sense of foreboding. As he neared the entrance, he spotted two familiar faces.
Potter and Weasley were trudging down the opposite way, shoulder to shoulder. He could see the moment Ron seemed to spot him, as his eyes widened, and narrowed. He sighed as the teen predictably grabbed Harry by the arm, dragging him away hastily.
“Let’s go, Harry,” He muttered, shooting Dazai a wary glance over his shoulder before hurrying away.
Dazai paused, watching them retreat. Being in Slytherin had clearly marked him in their eyes, and the animosity was palpable. He would need to rectify this if he was going to get anywhere in his recon mission. With a sigh, he decided to skip breakfast, not in the mood for the unfriendly atmosphere that awaited him inside. Not that he was ever in the mood for meals anyway.
Scratching at his bandaged wrist, he peered inside the Great Hall. Huffing as he saw Malfoy and his entourage, huddled together and talking animatedly. Their eyes scanned the room, and Dazai felt a pang of irritation. He didn’t need to be around them either.
He turned and left, heading back down the corridors. Hands stuffed in his pockets, eyes scanning the walls for any interesting paintings. Most occupants of said artworks appeared to shy away from him as he shuffled passed them. It seemed that No longer human was detectable even from a distance.
Spotting black robes out of the corner of his unbandaged eye, he turned, meeting the gaze of one Professor Snape, who eyed him with his usual penetrating stare.
“Leaving breakfast already, Dazai?” Snape's voice was cold and clipped.
“I ate earlier than the others, Professor,” Dazai replied smoothly.
Snape hummed at that. “Do not make a habit of lying to my face, Child.”
“Of course, Professor. I’ll keep that in mind.” Dazai smiled icily, wondering if the professor was an early riser too. “If that is all, I’d like to get some fresh air before class.”
Snape’s expression softened ever so slightly. “This is your class schedule, be sure to memorize it, as it will remain like so for the rest of the year.”
He accepted the papers with deft fingers, his eyes scanning over the parchment. He noted with some surprise that he had been placed in several advanced classes. His eyes settled on a peculiar piece of information, however. “Saturdays lessons?”
If the professor was surprised at how quickly he read through it, he recovered quickly. “Yes, as you have shown during your placement test, you are in dire need of assistance when it comes to the practical application of spells. I and some other teachers will be giving you some remedial lessons on the matter.”
“Oh joy.”
“Your first class is defense, I assume you are ignorant of its location?” The teacher said, ignoring him completely.
Before Dazai could answer, another voice piped up.
“I’ll show him the way, Professor.” The unfamiliar voice belonged to a girl, black hair cut short, falling right over her shoulders. Her posture was prim and poised. Yet, her eyes never strayed from Dazai’s sharp gaze.
The teacher regarded her with no small amount of suspicion. “Very well.” He drawled before promptly turning and marching away, his cloak blustering rather theatrically behind him.
“Is he always this dramatic?” He muttered, more to himself than anyone else.
He turned to face the girl, whose expression had fallen the moment Snape had been out of sight, her dainty features twisting into a heaty scowl. “So, you’re the transfer student Draco can’t seem to shut up about.”
“In the flesh, and who might you be?” He barely managed to cover the scowl threatening to overtake his face. He needed to keep a nonthreatening facade. No one would open up to him otherwise.
“Pansy Parkinson, not that I make a habit of talking to mudbloods.”
“Good for you.” He could already read her intentions, her body language giving away everything he needed to know. Not to mention that there was no reason for a Slytherin to wander these particular halls during breakfast unless she had sought him out personally. “So why did you go out of your way to talk to me then?”
“You’re new to Slytherin, and Salazar knows what that bloody hat was thinking when he decided a filthy muggle like you belonged anywhere near us, but since there’s nothing we can do about it, I might as well explain the rules of the house.
“Oh, a welcoming committee, how amusing.” He enthused, looking at her through a half-lidded gaze.
“Listen here, Idiot, because I’m not going to repeat this again.” She stepped closer, looking at him with clear disdain. “Slytherin house works under a strict hierarchy, and scum like you are lucky to scrape the bottom of the barrel. So keep your head down and listen to what your betters tell you, or you won’t even survive until Christmas. Got it?”
“That’s not very welcoming of you.”
“Do you think this is a joke? Considering everything you’re lucky I’m warning you at all.”
“So in this cute little hierarchy of yours, who’s the boss?” He could already take a guess, but just to be sure.
“If you don’t already know, then you’re even more hopeless than I thought.” With a rather dramatic flip of her hair, she meandered away.
So this was the way they were going to do things around here. Thinly veiled threats and obnoxious teenagers. And he thought the mafia was dramatic.
As he followed along the path Parkinson had taken, he realized that she hadn’t shown him the way in the end. With a resigned sigh, he resigned himself to his fate. It was barely the first day, and he was already late for class.
chapter8 already up