ok

ok

here’s my last ditch attempt to try to come up with a theory where the chapter 31 cover can still be canon despite dazai and chuuya not ‘meeting’ until they were older

what if… the chapter cover was canon, but, that’s about it. they see each other like that once or twice, but it can’t really be called a ‘meeting’ since it’s just kinda like, a passing glance. they know of each other’s existence but to say they’re ‘met’ properly would be an overstatement.

what if kouyou still looked after chuuya while he was young, but at some point he went through a Rebellious Phase where he ran away and started his own Sheep Gang

what if dazai was the one tasked with ‘retrieving’ him and bringing him back to the mafia?

what if that was their real ‘first meeting’, and it was after that that they became partners?