[Closed] Oh, let the bullets fly, oh, let them rain

[mobileforces]

⌛ Who: Higuchi Ichiyo and various
⌛ What: After facing weeks of harassment and hazing from higher-ups in the Port Market, everything comes to a head in the worst way possible for Higuchi
⌛ When: Early March
⌛ Where: Tokyo, Yokohama
⌛ Warnings: graphic violence, drugs, mentions of sexual assault, forced prostitution, disassociation, death

Comments

Closed to Aku

[mobileforces]

[It's been well over a week since everyone returned from the hot springs, and Higuchi is still... well, she's dealing with a lot. Confused feelings, mostly. But at least she has something to throw herself into, the Market seemingly not taking her sudden vacation too well. Though she's well aware she's an exception here -- at least as far as she knows, Chuuya and Akutagawa haven't had it nearly as bad as she has.]

[Still, it's not like she can just maintain silence forever. And so she sits in her dorm room, legs crossed as she stares down at her magi-comm, wondering whether she should send a message...]

[blackbeastcoat]

Higuchi. Are you at home? I'd like to speak with you.

[ The text should pop up promptly on her end. He has had time to think about things since uh... that time, and he hasn't heard from her in over a week after they got back so there was perhaps maybe some concern here. ]

1/2

[mobileforces]

[NEARLY THROWS HER COMM THROUGH THE GODDAMN WALL IN SURPRISE]

[mobileforces]

Yes, I'm at home.
Would there be somewhere more convenient for you for us to meet?
I wouldn't want to trouble you making you come all this way.

[Her text is all serious and professional but on the outside this is her face.]

Closed to Chuuya

[mobileforces]

[It's been a long week.]

[Higuchi was tired, and her heart felt more confused than ever. And work was... well, it was never relaxing, was it? But that's just how things are, right? It's not like she ever felt very relaxed in the mafia. Even if she did care about the people, it's not as though the thought of leaving never crossed her mind.]

[But she couldn't leave. How could she? Not when Sempai was still--]

[...]

[Well, that doesn't matter. Because she can't leave the Market either. Which is why, rather than running to catch the train home, she finds a bar to sit at and orders something to sip at for a while, taking a moment to look down at her hands, scarred from cigarette burns... even now, they still ached.]

Re: Closed to Chuuya

[darkdisgrace]

[Honestly, Chuuya was looking for a drink himself after a long day working. Not that it was at all difficult like Higuchi's: Some security work and hauling boxes of shady goods. His ability was useful enough he's started to get people asking for him by word of mouth, so work was going well at least.

He's surprised to see Higuchi lingering at a bar when she could be going home, but that won't stop him from sliding into the seat next to her, frowning a little as he catches her staring at her hands.

Those scars...]

...Hey, Higuchi.

[mobileforces]

[She jumps a little when Chuuya suddenly appears and-- ah yes. Like clockwork, here come the sparkles.]

A-Ahh, Chuuya-san! I-I didn't see you there. Having a drink after work?

[Her entire face is beet red while talking to him. She's always worn her heart on her sleeve.]

Closed to Bunaru!Dazai

[mobileforces]

[As the week continues to drag on, Dazai is sure to notice that, post vacation, Higuchi seems... tired. More so than usual. Really, it's a good thing that there isn't much supernatural happening in Yoshiwara, because that's really the last thing she needs right now.]

[She's come home late just about every night, crawling into bed without much of a word -- and sometimes leaving before he even wakes up. But on one night in particular, it seems she had a pretty hard time of it. She's later than usual, even for her, and try as she might to hide it -- she's pretty obviously crying as she opens the door.]

[thesettingsun]

Higuchi...?

[No, there's no hiding that, and Dazai hesitates. He knows he isn't the best at comfort, given how well it's gone when he's tried it before with her, but...]

Do you want a hug?

[mobileforces]

[There's a small, soft gasp in the dim light. And just like that, she's quickly wiping her eyes as she kneels down.]

S-Sorry... I tried not to wake you up. I-I know it's late.

[It's not a no just yet.]

March 10th - Missing

[mobileforces]

[After agreeing to go on an honest-to-god date with Akutagawa, Higuchi texts him the night before to confirm the time and place. She sounds as cool and professional as she always does over text, but finds the courage to include a heart emoji. She says she has to get back to work... and that's the last anyone hears from her. The next day, she doesn't show up as planned, and doesn't answer when texted. Calls go straight to voice mail. And seeing as she always worked at so many different places, there's no way to know where to call and ask whether or not she showed up.]

[But asking the workers at the train station, they'll be able to confirm definitively that they did not see her return to Tokyo the next morning, as she always made a habit of chatting with them as she waited for the morning trains to start around 5am.]


[Feel free to use this top-level for any inbox threads related to figuring out where Higuchi could be!]

MASS TEXT

[blackbeastcoat]

[ After Higuchi failed to show for the date, he knew something was amiss. She wasn't the type. Not after she'd texted him the night before to confirm the time and place where they were to be meeting up.

So this was a time in which he grabbed a couple of important contact numbers and sent them off without hesitation. ]

Have any of you seen Higuchi recently?

[darkdisgrace]

Not today, no. I figured she'd be working.

[But given Akutagawa was asking... He's a little suspicious now.]

Is that not the case?

[thesettingsun]

She didn't come back last night. I was thinking of texting you.

Do you think it's something with the Port Market?

[He won't break Higuchi's privacy and mention that she broke down crying in his arms, but in this situation, he's absolutely willing to mention how they were hazing her.]

March 11th - The Hunt (cw: violence, allusions to sexual violence)

[mobileforces]

[Following tips from a variety of sources, the group searching for Higuchi is led to a particular slum on the edge of Yokohama. Loosely connected by tunnels to the Port Market, the slum was infamous as a red light district prone to human trafficking. But while most of the brothels here were suspect, with women lined up like objects behind wooden bars-- one in particular is their destination.]

[Unfortunately, one of their sources tipped them off beforehand. The building is locked up, meaning they'll have to force their way in. Inside, they'll be met with armed guards in full metal armor, wielding swords and guns. The higher rooms have been cleared out, but the basement leads to a tunnel -- upon which one of the women being held there will be able to direct them down the right path. It's up to them whether or not they free her in return, as she'll need an escort back to Tokyo to be safe.]

[Security in the tunnel is stronger, and is widely patrolled by Yokai of all types. Most of them are magic-wielding Kitsune, capable of binding others with magic, teleporting, and creating fire. A few super-powered Oni will be the toughest opponents, seemingly impervious thanks to their magic, with only their horns as their weakness.]

[Whether they choose to kill or disarm their opponents is up to them, but aside from the Oni, most of them will flee if they see they're outclassed.]

[blackbeastcoat]

[ This whole district has him disgusted, though he's mostly just brimming with anger as they arrive. He may be dressed in a very nice outfit but his expression is almost borderline murderous as they walked along.

Once they reached the building in question, Akutagawa took one look at the way things were locked up before instantly summoning Rashomon and several white tendrils shot out to slice the entire door into pieces. His ability reformed into it's more beastly form, red eyes glowing and teeth sharp and poised as he stepped forwards. Their GUNS did not phase him. ]

Pathetic.

[ He's already stepping forwards, turning his attention to the men closest to him and Rashomon's beastly head shoots forwards with teeth open wide and him ready to deflect any bullets. Holding back is no longer an option. ]

[darkdisgrace]

[Chuuya has never been a man of great self-restraint, and when people he cares about are in trouble... well, any he could possibly have goes straight out the window.

Guns won't do shit to him, but he's quite happy to redirect any bullets shot their way that Akutagawa misses, a red glow overtaking his form as he alters their gravity on the return and sends them back with twice as much force.]

These pieces of shit have no idea what they're dealing with.

[He strides forward with Akutagawa, trusting the other to watch his side as one of the guards rushes him with a blade-- he ducks under it, reaching up with one gloved hand to slam his fist into the metal armor.

It crunches inward like paper.]

Where is she?

March 11th - Found

[mobileforces]

(cw: violence, drugs, sexual assault, forced prostitution, disassociation, death, MANY BAD THINGS)


[Higuchi doesn't remember how she came here anymore.]

[She was told she had a special job tonight. It was something that always left her uneasy, not sure where she would be moved around to, or what she would be expected to do. But this time was different. She was led to nice room, sat down. Told she just needed to entertain some clients. So she served drinks, provided pleasant conversation... as far as clients go, they seemed kinder than usual. And so she let her guard down.]

[The moment she took the drink that was offered to her, she realized her mistake.]

[Everything after that is a blur. She remembers being held up, her clothes being stripped and replaced with fine robes, all the while being petted and groped by the hands of strangers. Just when she feels her wits come about her again, she's offered another drink. Why does she drink it? She doesn't know. But they told her to do so, and she complied. Was it really any different from any other job they've given her so far? It's been so much worse than she's let on. The scars on her palms are only the half of it. Even others in the market seemed aware that something about the way she was treated was particularly malicious.]

[And the reasons for that become all too clear, when the very same man responsible for her treatment up until now is to be her first client.]

[The world is suddenly spinning as she finds herself being thrown to the floor, landing flat on her back. Something hits her once, twice. There's someone on top of her now -- what's happening? It's so hard to focus, so hard to see, to breathe--]

[But for the two searching for her, this is the end of the line. There are two hallways on either floor left to be searched -- and she just so happens to be in one of the rooms. And when they open that door, they'll find Higuchi laying on the floor, bleeding from a wound of her head and her face, as a man looms over her -- his hands wrapped around her neck, with her legs pushed up against her chest. Her face is heavily painted in make-up, but it's clearly her. And yet she won't react at all when the door opens.]

CW: Violence, gore, quick but gruesome death

[darkdisgrace]

[They'd decided to split up. They needed to find Higuchi fast, and searching both hallways as a pair would take far too long. Chuuya checks each door one by one, fighting the occasional oni or kitsune as he goes, if he must.

By the time he slams open the door to find Higuchi, he's covered in blood and seeing even more red at the sight in front of him.]

Get off of her!!

[The man isn't even going to have time to scream as Chuuya grabs him, ripping his hands away from Higuchi's neck... and almost from his body, with the force of his grip. Once he's off Higuchi, Chuuya is throwing him on the floor, one foot stomping down--

and right into the man's head. There's a sickening crunch as his foot goes straight through the man into the floorboards. At any other time he'd have made his death slow and painful, but he wanted him dead and off Higuchi more than anything right now.]

Sick bastard.

[mobileforces]

[It happens too quickly for Higuchi's brain to keep up, the drugs making it hard enough for her to do much thinking. One minute she can't breathe, and the next... she's cold. The reason for which is obvious -- her kimono completely torn open, leaving her exposed. She has enough of her wits about her to cover herself with her arm as she sits up, but given the blood dripping down her head, moving is probably not the smartest move.]

[Her eyes flicker blankly from the gorey scene, to Chuuya, to the room around her... and as if triggering some kind of delayed reaction to everything that was happening to her-- she screams as if in pain, curling up on herself.]

[blackbeastcoat]

[ Having taken the other hallway and Chuuya with the other was much faster, and he took no time checking each one while taking care of any that dared get in his way. Which meant by the time he heard what sounded like a VERY loud yell belonging to Chuuya? His once beautiful, pristine white outfit was now splattered grotesquely with blood all over.

If that yell hadn't gotten his attention before, hearing Higuchi's screams is enough to have him on his way.

Such would have taken much, much longer given the distance but he didn't give a damn about normal doors. Not when he used Rashomon to CUT holes in walls and floors to go through in order to reach them faster. The only door he actually came through was the one Higuchi and Chuuya were in, eyes widening once he saw the sight before him, but it wasn't the sight of the corpse on the ground nearby that got his attention.

Higuchi was on the ground clinging to Chuuya, wrapped up in a blanket with her screaming and crying ringing in his ears. Gone was his furious rage from before as he stepped forwards slowly. ]

Forgive me for taking so long to arrive.

[ Akutagawa's voice is calm, wiping some blood off his cheek. He'd long since realized he'd broken his promise not to kill, consumed by his rage from before. Yet in this moment, she was his focus here. ]

1/2

[mobileforces]

[No matter how loud her crying is, no matter how delayed her reactions are now thanks to the drugs in her system-- the second she hears Akutagawa's voice, she jerks herself away from Chuuya to turn and face him, gasping into stunned silence.]

[Of course he would come looking for her. Of course he wouldn't turn a blind eye to her abrupt disappearance. And of course he would be successful.]

[So why is she so surprised?]

[She moves away from Chuuya, visibly unsteady. It only takes a glance to tell what must have happened, her kimono torn and indecent underneath the blanket over her shoulders. But she's not concerned about that right now. In fact, she's not concerned about herself at all.]

S-Sem... pai... I-I...

[Why should she... when she's the one who failed?]

March 11th - Aftermath (cw: mentions of all of the above)

[mobileforces]

[Everything after that is a blur for different reasons. Did they really think they could get away with something so flashy without drawing attention to themselves?]

[By the time the samurai guards appear to lock down the scene, word has already reached Tokyo that a refugee had disappeared in the Port Market. How and when that message was sent is unclear, but it certainly complicates matters. Between the samurai, the Port Market's influence in Yokohama, and the NRL's (apparent?? mystery) sway over the emperor himself-- well, it's the only reason the three of them are escorted back to Tokyo, with orders to remain in their homes for the next few days until things are sorted out. In the end, while Chuuya and Akutagawa may see a single day of gay baby jail time sometime in the next week, ultimately no charges will be filed, as Yokohama instead tries to sweep the matter under the rug, while the Market chooses to distance themselves from the slum district. And over the next few weeks, the slum district is cleaned up and completely dismantled.]

[But back in Tokyo, Higuchi is... well, a mess. Whatever drugs they've given her are clearly still having an effect on her, making her a bit slow and spacey for the first day or so. She spends a lot of time crying and apologizing. The NRL has a healer sent to take care of their wounds. And despite the huge mess they caused, given the reasons why, they won't even be scolded for it.]

[Feel free to start a thread: 1. right after returning to Tokyo, when she's still out of it and needs to be cleaned up and treated; 2. after being cleaned up in Chuuya's apartment, but still out of it; 3. the next day, when she has her wits about her again. Though how much she'll actually want to talk about what happened when she's back to herself is hard to say.]

2

[thesettingsun]

[Thank god someone texted him. Dazai hurries to Chuuya's apartment as quickly as he's able, and once he sees Higuchi alive and safe-]

Higuchi!!

[-it's crying hours now. He hurries to her side and hugs her tightly.]

2

[blackbeastcoat]

[ To say there was a LOT to process was an understatement.

Even after they returned to Tokyo and he'd gotten cleaned up with a change of clothes, Akutagawa was still lingering but waiting until Higuchi had spoken to the others. He couldn't forget the way she'd apologized to him, her words echoing in his head over and over.

The same went for having watched her reaction when it came to both him and Chuuya. How she'd clung to Chuuya on the way back but hadn't done anything like that with him before, and it left this weird, bitter feeling lodged in his chest. Higuchi had been the one to experience such an awful ordeal, drugged and put through hell and here his reactions were making it seem as if it'd been him with how he was acting. Remaining quiet and distant while lost in his thoughts and any verbal responses were short, curt and almost dismissive.

Only when he saw her alone and all cleaned up properly did he reluctantly approach, hesitant and almost unsure. ]

Higuchi...

[ Words were hard. He didn't know what to say. Clearly he wasn't the comforting type, but this was him making an effort to try and do something. ]

Regarding what has happened... I wish to make it up to you. It's clear I have been lacking in supporting you until now, but... [ Akutagawa finally looked up towards her properly. ] I would... like to change that if you would allow me to do so.