#Twelve Days Of Kny | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

demonslayedher · 2 months ago

Text

Determining Ages and Birth Years

Kimetsu no Yaiba’s first official fanbook gave us ages for the many of the main characters, but in a manga where calculating age can be crucial, why are these numbers not so straightforward? Because the Japanese calendar is a mess, and the Taisho period was an in-between stage in many ways. Many new changes were established in the Meiji period but not broadly enforced until the Showa period, including how to count one’s age.

This subject can be terribly complicated, but please follow me below for:

--Historical context for how methods of counting age could differ --Which method I choose to apply to Kimetsu no Yaiba and why --Based on that, a list of my calculations for dates of birth, zodiac signs (Chinese and Western), and because it’s handy, the date each of these characters would have turned 25

In the Taisho period, there are two methods of counting age in play:

Kazoedoshi (“counting years”): Counting the years one has been in alive in, with that year having started on the agricultural new year and counting a new year to one’s age each New Year’s Day after that, like how it is still practiced in South Korea.

Which is to say, you are born at age 1, counting the first calendar year you lived in, and on the following New Year’s Day, you are age 2, even if you have only been out of the womb a very short time.

Mannenrei (“full year age”): Counting only each full 12-month period since your birth as part of your age, like how it is practiced in the United States of America.

Which is to say, you are born at age 0, and after twelve full months have passed, you are age 1.

Kazoedoshi was practiced through most of the Demon Slayer Corp’s history, but the Meiji government enforced a switch to Mannenrei in 1902. However, most people still practiced Kazoedoshi throughout the Meiji, Taisho, and early Showa periods, and it wasn’t until 1950 that the government reinforced the switch to Mannenrei. This is also when, with the influx of American culture due to the post-war occupation, individual birthdays started to be marked with cake and presents. Until that time, people did not pay much attention to their date of birthday besides, perhaps, a passing notion and maybe a shrine or temple visit and a nice dinner (see more on this post). Many people continued to count their own age in Kazoedoshi until 1950, and although some people liked the “oh, actually I’m younger than I thought I was!” surprise (because Manrenrei really was outside of their usual way of thinking), it made centenarians a little sad that they hadn’t actually reached 100.

Similarly, even though the Meiji government enforced a switch to the Gregorian calendar which put New Years on January 1, many people still celebrated a sliding date according to a lunar-based agricultural calendar, like is still done in China. It was likewise later reinforced.

In modern Japan, New Years on Gregorian January 1 and counting age by the Mannenrei system are the norm and standard, however, some customs (especially but not limited to religious customs) are still celebrated according to the agricultural calendar and Kazoedoshi ages. It’s annoying to keep track of and if I had a 5-yen coin for every time I say the Japanese calendar is a mess, I’d have a lot more yen.

The canon of Kimetsu no Yaiba does not specify any of the following: 1. What year most of KnY takes place (but based on clues from the Hand Demon, we can extrapolate that most of it takes place in 1915) 2. Whether the characters’ given ages are according to Kazoedoshi or Mannenrei, and whether the characters’ given birthdates are according to the Gregorian or agricultural calendars 3. Which method the characters use to count New Years and their own age 4. If there are any differences among the cast and how they count these things (like if the city-slickers were with the times and the country bumpkins were not) 5. Whether or not Amane accounted for Mannenrei or Kazoedoshi when stating that all the marked swordsmen of the Sengoku period died by the age of 25

So what are fanfic writers who are preoccupied with canon accuracy to do? How much should the fans of characters who got the mark fret?

After tying my brain in knots (for years, since I attempted tackling this issue years ago and this is my better post addressing the issue(s)), here are the ways that I approach it.

First: I firmly treat most of the events of canon as firmly taking place in Gregorian 1915, with the Final Selection taking place that winter and Muzan’s defeat coming sometime around the very end of 1915 or start of 1916. (See here for how I calculated all the time frames indicated in canon. You’re welcome.)

Second, we have to treat the official fanbook material in the context of how it was published. I think the ages in the fanbook are given in Mannenrei for the benefit of Heisei/Reiwa period readers, but if you really want to dig into it, the characters might interpret their own age differently based on Kazoedoshi, since it was such a prevalent way to count one’s age even for people born in the Taisho period. For example, Tanjirou’s given canon age is 15 (Mannenrei), but if you ask him in-universe, he might say he is 17 (Kazoedoshi).

Even if we assume many of the characters use the agricultural calendar and Kazoedoshi, there is a chance that characters who actively used western technology—for example, Shinobu, who uses textbooks in English microscopes and thermometers that likely came from Germany—had switched to Mannenrei for the sake of more accuracy on an individual basis. It is also possible that the Corp enacted their own standardization to Mannenrei around the time they standardized uniforms and updated the payment structure. If this is the case, it might have required country bumpkins to rethink the systems they had always been used to. Tanjirou, if asked in-universe once he is a Corp member, would therefore say he is 15 (Mannenrei).

The places the Kazoedoshi/Mannenrei difference has more implications is where characters have stated their own age. For example, Himejima seems to use a Mannenrei system (he states that he became a Hashira at age 19, and now is clearly over the age of 25, with his canonical age being recorded as 27. The numbers check out). This makes me more curious about Muichirou, who has a canonical given age of 14, but says in his own recollection that he was 10 when he was orphaned, and 11 when Yuichirou died.

If Mannenrei: It was four years or more ago that his parents died, and then sometime after he and Yuichirou turned 11 on Gregorian August 8, the demon attacked on a hot summer night. If Kazoedoshi: It was four years or more ago that his parents died. New Years passed that winter and he and Yuichirou turned 11. Many more months passed before the demon attacked on a hot summer night. However, if the Corp enforces his Mannenrei age of 14, but being a country bumpkin with a fuzzy memory, Muichirou still thinks of himself in Kazoedoshi, thereby making him think of himself as 16: It was six years or more ago that his parents died. New Years passed that winter and he and Yuichirou turned 11. Many more months passed before the demon attacked on a hot summer night. He nonetheless became a Hashira relatively recently (according to aligning Kyojuro-related flashback material and the second fanbook making passing mention that he hasn’t been a Hashira that long so his impression of the others isn’t that deep). This implies he spent a very, very, very, very long time incapacitated before he could so much as hold a sword, let alone join the Final Selection.

So what if we consider the opposite, that every given age is in Kazoedoshi? That would mean that when the fanbook and Tanjirou say he is 15, we would translate that back to a Mannenrei age of 13. And, dear readers, do you really want to imagine the entire cast being one or two years younger than their given age? I didn’t think so.

It is already very, very difficult to determine the order of Kimetsu no Yaiba canon both due to incomplete histories and canonical errors introduced by outside material (Ufotable animating Kanao’s May 19 encounter with the Kochou sisters with a winter setting, or Hirano-sensei drawing a spread of all nine Hashira in a 1913 setting) or timeline errors introduced in the original manga likely due to oversight (Gotouge drawing Aoi in uniform shortly after Kanae’s death when Aoi is later stated to have attended the same Final Selection as Muichirou, who at the time Kanae died is likely still living with his parents). That is why I assume the following rule of thumb:

When ages are given in-universe or in supplementary material, assume it is Mannenrei, because this is a shounen manga and not a math textbook. (As another case in point, the heights of the characters would have made most of the characters giants in Taisho society, though they get away with just being a bit on the tall side in Reiwa society. Some things are simplified for the benefit of modern readers.)

Assume the characters do not pay much attention to their age, or their birthday, because this is a shounen manga with a lot of dedication to historical settings and folk traditions (and those folks didn’t pay much attention to their birthdays).

Ergo: If the Corp tells its members “this is your Mannenrei age, use it. When we say 25, we have already done the math from our Sengoku period records and we mean 25 in Mannenrei,” the Corp members probably accept that. However, the Corp members might think of it as having two ages for two different purposes. Given the prevalence of Kazoedoshi, in their heart, they might still think of New Years as the time when you collectively celebrate everyone’s birthday.

Since I’m assuming Mannenrei, I’m also assuming Gregorian birthdates, and assuming everyone’s given canon age to be the age they were during the Infinity Fortress battle that took place roughly around New Year’s Day 1916.

Why am I picking this date? Because this is when the first fanbook was published, and it treated canon as it was occurring at that time in publication, so Akaza, Douma, and Kokushibou were not yet given the “eliminated” status (also, Rengoku was given already called “former” Flame Hashira. Shinobu’s demise had not yet been published in the serialization).

I also say “roughly New Year” because of the agricultural/Gregorian calendar issues. The agricultural New Year’s Day in 1916 would have fallen on Gregorian February 4, but because I’m treating this as the Corp having adopted Mannenrei, I’m also having them treat Gregorian January 1 as New Years. Because Ubuyashiki Nichika and Hinaki were singing a New Years song when Muzan strolled in to visit, that leans credence toward it happening around then. More crucially, cherry blossoms are in full bloom “three months later,” which aligns it best with Gregorian January 1, since late March/early April is when you are most likely to get the full bloom of the most common somei-yoshino cherry trees.

It’s also a convenient date and time in the plot to measure by because all their birthdays would have passed for that year, barely including Nezuko’s. (But if Mugen Ressha took place prior to May, like I have calculated before… does this mean Rengoku would have been part of Team 21? My gosh, I’m crying. For this list, I’m treating it as the age he would have been relative to the others on that date.)

Tl;dr: I’m assuming you can treat every canon age as Mannenrei, and totally ignore Kazoedoshi in the first place (unless if it will help you be crafty in your fic, because there’s still a good case to be made for the characters using it).

Now here is the fanfic reference list I promised, including: 1. Their date of birth according to the Gregorian calendar, calculated based their canon age being their Mannenrei age as of December 31, 1915. 2. Their birth year according to the Japanese period 3. The year they would have turned 25 4. Their Chinese zodiac sign (yes, I know there is argument about whether or not you can say “zodiac” here, but this isn’t the place to start a new topic. Anyway, I’ve also included the elements for each year for the deep nerds who anticipate it) (also I’m really sorry, Inosuke is not born in the Year of the Boar, nor is Iguro born in the Year of the Snake) 5. Their Western zodiac sign (yes, I know there was a recalculation of sun signs some years back, but no, I’m not bothering to take that into account, this post is complicated enough as it is) Important caveat: I'm bad at math.

Kamado Tanjirou: July 14, 1900/Meiji 33 (1925/Taisho 14), Metal Rat, Cancer Kamado Nezuko: December 28, 1901/Meiji 34 (1926/Taisho 15), Metal Ox, Capricorn Agatsuma Zenitsu: September 3, 1899/Meiji 32 (1924/Taisho 13), Earth Boar, Virgo Hashibira Inosuke: April 22 (as was written on his fundoshi along with his name), 1900/Meiji 33 (1925/Taisho 14), Metal Rat, Taurus Tsuyuri Kanao: May 19 (chosen for the day she encountered the Kochou sisters), 1899/Meiji 32 (sometime in 1924??/Taisho 13??), Earth Boar(?), Taurus (???) Shinazugawa Genya: January 7, 1899/Meiji 32 (1924/Taisho 13) – by Gregorian/modern Japanese system he is an Earth Boar, but the agricultural New Year wasn’t until February 10 that year, so he might instead be considered an Earth Dog, Capricorn Tomioka Giyuu: February 8, 1894/Meiji 27 (1919/Taisho 8), Wood Horse, Aquarius Kochou Shinobu: February 24, 1897/Meiji 30 (1822/Taisho 11), Fire Rooster, Pisces Rengoku Kyoujurou: May 10, 1895/Meiji 28 (1920/Taisho 9), Wood Sheep, Taurus Uzui Tengen: October 31, 1892/Meiji 25 (1917/Taisho 6), Water Dragon, Scorpio Kanroji Mitsuri: June 1, 1896/Meiji 29 (1921/Taisho 10), Fire Monkey, Gemini Tokitou Muichirou: August 8, 1901/Meiji 34 (1926/Taisho 15), Metal Ox, Leo Himejima Gyoumei: August 23, 1888/Meiji 21 (1913/Taisho 2), Earth Rat, Virgo Shinazugawa Sanemi: November 29, 1894/Meiji 27 (1919/Taisho 8), Wood Horse, Sagittarius Iguro Obanai: September 15,1894/Meiji 27 (1919/Taisho 8), Wood Horse, Virgo

Afterword:

Suppose Amane didn’t do the math to state the Sengoku swordsmans’ ages in Mannenrei terms? What if their records were spotty, or she took Kazoedoshi and applied it to swordsmen who now use Mannenrei?

Well, in that case, Tanjirou would probably die sometime in 1923, and Giyuu & Sanemi sometime in 1917. Ergo, I think I will stick with Amane having done the math and converted Sengoku ages to Mannennei if she was going to tell them all something so important.

Also, using Kazoedoshi would totally mess with the Kimetsu Gakuen AU.

#kny fandom theories and meta #kny nerdery #kny reference #kny references

85 notes · View notes

valsvalentine · 3 months ago

Note

heyy, I wanted to request something🤍

So it is for kny, a female hashira!y/n x hashira!yoriichi , where there is a kind of one sided enemies to lovers ( from y/n‘s side, entho there is no reason to hate yoriichi!)

Hope it isn’t too specific🤍

INFURIATING

Yoriichi Tsugikuni x hashira!reader

ʚ summary. You’ve always been kind of jealous of Yoriichi, being the second best samurai at the time came with trying to compete with him yet he seemed so unbothered and was still kind to you which sparked something in you. Was it love? Or do you just despise him that much?

ʚ A/N. This is um.. long to say the least :,) I hope you like it since I don’t know much about Yoriichis character but I looked into him a bit more before writing this sooo it should be fine

ʚ warning. not proof read, mentions of bl00d, strong language, might be an OOC Yoriichu but I’m not sure since I’ve stated I don’t know much about his character

— Infuriating. That’s the word you’d say every time someone asked you about your fellow hashira; Yoriichi Tsugikuni. You disliked him dearly, the way he did everything so effortlessly and had the nerve to correct your movements when training just boiled something in you. The way he’d bring you water or lunch after training for hours without end, the way he’d treat your wounds after a particularly challenging mission while scolding you like an angry parent.

Most of the time you pushed him away, his soft and caring aura was intoxicating and you just hated it. Why was he so kind? It’s not like you ever did anything for him so what was the point?

You only ever teased him and gave him nothing but annoyed glances when he was around you, yet he still kept his calm demeanor like it was nothing.

Hashira meetings were unbearable and when your master sent you on missions you’d always somehow end up with him if it were to be a joined mission. You begged and pleaded to get paired with someone else but your master was set on pairing the both of you together due to your unwavering strength.

He always tried to get closer to you, asking you questions about your life and what you enjoyed. You never really gave him an answer, either ignoring his question completely and giving him the cold shoulder or told him it was none of his business. Yoriichi might have looked calm, but deep down he was getting a little ticked off by your unexplainable behaviour. He did not understand what he might’ve done to make you hate him so much. Was he too pushy? That could be it. Not a day passed where he didn’t check up on you or tried to strike up a conversation either by sending his crow with a letter neatly tied to its leg or came by your mansion himself.

Fast forward to the present, you were on a mission with the one and only younger Tsugikuni, running towards a village in need of both of your assistance. A lower moon demon has been spotted there and caused quite a massacre along with some weak demons that leeched off the power of the member of the twelve kizuki.

“I’ll head towards the hot springs, they said there were quite a large amount of weak demons there and they’re causing quite a ruckus. I’ll join you after things are taken care of.” Yoriichi was about to protest, knowing that splitting up right now wouldn’t be the best option yet you jumped off high into the air and you were gone. He cussed under his breath and went towards the center of the village where screams could be heard.

Meanwhile you rushed to the hot springs, slaying two demons on your way there, thankfully no injured civilians in sight. The entrance came into view, making your way up the stairs and looked around to see blood, screams getting more and more intense as you neared where you assumed the demons were. Your eyes widened, freezing in place. You were informed that the hot springs had a handful of weak demons, but piercing eyes stared at you with the writing ‘Lower two’ engraved in its power hungry eyes.

You weren’t necessarily scared, you killed a lower moon once, which played a huge part in you being promoted to hashira, but you didn’t come home unharmed. That was a few years ago when you just joined the demon slayer corps, things would be different now, right?

The fight itself was rough, you managed to land hits on it but you yourself didn’t go unharmed. You swung your sword, finally spotting an opening so you went for it, not wasting such a perfect chance at ending the battle. The thread dissapeared last second, your sword breaking as it collided with it’s neck. You curse, stumbling back to put distance between the two of you. ‘What now?’ You think to yourself as your eyes dart around to find some sort of good strategy but your mind was blank. You scolded yourself, a huge burst of guilt and feeling of failure overtook you as you clutched to the hand of your sword. ‘No, I can’t let it win. All of my hard training to surpass that annoying Tsugikuni would go to waste.”

‘Fighting it until sunrise it is.’ You say and swing your legs to hit its head, throwing punches and kicks to throw it off but it dodged or blocked them with ease. Your plan had little to no chance of working, but it didn’t hurt to try. You fought it with all the strength you had, somehow dodging the attacks it threw at you along with the blood demon art it unleashed when pure frustration and rage took over it.

The sun was slowly peaking out yet the demon was so blinded by rage it just pounced on you, scratching at your arms and legs and leaving deep cuts on your body that has reached its limit. Soon a scream of pure agony escaped the demons mouth, disintegrating into thin air leaving you panting on the ground. Getting up felt too much like a bother right now so you just lied there, studying how the stars slowly faded from the once inky black sky, fading into beautiful shades of purple, pink and light blue. You were so lost in thought that you hadn’t heard Yoriichi running towards you, covering your view of the sky.

You pulled yourself up, you hated being vulnerable and especially in front of the man you’ve been trying so desperately to surpass. Yoriichi furrowed his brows at the sight of your injured body, standing in front of you. “Get on.” He motioned towards his back and you glared. “I can walk.” You say and go to walk but stumble right away, falling face first onto the ground, an agonising pain shooting through your body.

Yoriichi knew damn well he could’ve caught you, but you needed a bit of a humbling after your rude attitude you had with him for the past couple years. He raised a brow at you while you looked away, cheeks red in embarrassment and brows furrowed. He sighed, letting you get onto his back and ran with you to your own mansion.

As he slowly approached the building, he slowed down his pace. Walking through the entrance and down a hallway, he entered your bathroom and placed you down onto the floor, careful not to hurt you. He ran you a bath and looked through the many drawers you had to find bandages and anything to help clean your wounds.

“Take a bath and then i’ll attend to your wounds.” He said and turned around to leave the bathroom, shutting the door behind him. You scoffed and did as he told you, getting into the bath to wash the days filth away. You hated that you were so vulnerable, you hated that he was taking care of you, but you loved his caring tone, you loved his sweet and gentle touches but you wouldn’t be caught dead telling that to anyone. You dry yourself off, your wounds still leaking blood so you decide to change into just your undergarments as to not bloody your fresh clothes. “You can come in now.” You say, the door opening just after that. Yoriichi didn’t even stare, taking you aback but your heart couldn’t help but warm up at how respectful he was. He took ahold of your arm, cleaning the wound and wrapping bandages carefully around it.

He did this with all four of your limbs, and after he was sure your wounds were attended to he pulled you into an embrace. You wanted to push him away, but something in you made you hug him back. You inhaled his scent, it was like a toxic gas as your heart started to pound against your chest and cheeks warming up. “You’re so reckless L/N, you should’ve backed down once your sword broke.” He said sternly like an angry parent making you scoff. “I’m alive aren’t I? So why scold me? A true slayer won’t yield and will fight to the death.” You stated matter of factly and put your hand on his chest to try pull him away yet he didn’t even budge. He stared at you with worry in his eyes and cupped your cheek in his hand, tracing circles as to comfort you in some sort of way. “L/N you have no idea how devastated I’d be if I found out I failed to protect you.” He said and you let out a laugh. “Of course! The perfect Yoriichi Tsugikuni, failed to protect someone for the first time in his life and finds out he isn’t as invincible and strong as he thinks he is!” You say in a dramatic tone and roll your eyes. “You’re fucking pathetic Tsugikuni.” You let those words slip out of your mouth, a feeling of guilt overwhelming you once meeting Yoriichis hurt expression.

For the first time ever since you met the man, anger took over him. He pushed you away and went to say something but not a word came out. He took a deep breath and turned around. “Good night, L/N.” And after that he left.

Weeks went by and Yoriichis visits stopped. He never even spared you a glance during meetings and only spoke to you when absolutely necessary. You found yourself missing his check ups, his curious questions and enjoyable meals he’d bring by every day. You missed his gentle tone, his comforting pressance but most of all his embrace. You thought about that day every single day, the way his heartbeat pounded against his chest, the way he rubbed circles on your back, it left you longing for more.

Maybe trying to find out why he was avoiding you wouldn’t be so bad. Yes what you said was harsh, but you couldn’t understand why he resorted to avoiding you after you’ve been teasing and pushing his buttons for years now. Pleading with your master, he finally slipped and told you what was bothering the young man. He told you about his wife, how he failed to protect her and his unborn child the same year you became a hashira and how it left him devastated. You soon understood why what you said struck him so much, you simply went too far and triggered something in him to make him remember that traumatic experience.

Everything started falling into place, you thanked your master and left without another word to the Tsugikuni mansion.

With each step you got closer, your heartbeat only increased and a lump formed in your throat. It was like something was suffocating you yet your determination to apologise to Yoriichi was stronger then the anxiety trying to hold you back.

Thoughts clouded your mind, thinking about the years you’ve known Yoriichi and scolded yourself for every single thing you’ve ever said to him, maybe, no, you really shouldn’t have been that harsh on him when all he ever did was be kind to you. Yoriichi was a very thoughtful and understanding, but would he forgive you now after crossing the line with your sarcastic remarks?

You let yourself in once you arrived at his home, knowing the path by heart by now and took off your zori before walking down the hall to look for the man. The garden was a place he usually spent his time in; either training or clearing his mind. And you were right, after sliding the door open you were met with Yoriichi swinging his sword at some make shift mannequin, glancing your way as the sound of someone being inside his home alerted him. You went to speak but getting tackled to the ground by a 6’3 man wasn’t exactly your ideal position to start a conversation in. His eyes softened when he saw it was you, getting off and looked at you expectantly. You cleared your throat, all the things you practiced leaving your mind as everything became a blur and a faint ringing noise echoed in your head.

“I wanted to— no, I need to apologise for my actions and attitude towards you for the past couple off years. I’ve been nothing less than a nuisance and even though you were endlessly kind I pushed you away without reason. I was jealous of you, I think I made that very clear and I guess I was blinded by these emotions and lashed out that night. I’m terribly sorry and I understand if you want me out of your sight, just tell me if you don’t want me around I—”

Something warm was met with your lips, you immediately went silent before realising Yoriichi was kissing you. It was sweet and gentle, comforting even but you expected nothing less from this angel of a man. He cupped your cheek, pulling you closer with his other hand which was now on your waist and hummed. A feeling of sadness and wanting enveloped you once he pulled away, his maroon eyes staring gently into yours e/c ones. “Sorry that was uncalled for, I shouldn’t have done that without a warning or permission.” He said and looked away, the tips of his ears red. You embraced him, leaning your head onto his chest. “No, no don’t apologise, you have nothing to apologise for. I’m the one that should be apologising and I really meant everything I said.” You state and cling to him. “I was wrong for pushing you away, I’m sorry I said such hurtful things, I’m sorry for everything Yoriichi I really am.” He put his finger under your chin to make you look at him, his expression was still not readable but he looked more calm, like his usual self. “The things you said did hurt, and I probably won’t forget that easily but I am grateful for the apology. I love you Y/N I really do, but we should take things a bit more slow.” He stated and you nodded eagerly, smiling in relief. “I agree, taking things slow does sound nice and I’m.. new to this whole love thing.”

A low chuckle escaped his lips, a gentle smile gracing his features. “For starters, you could be a little less stubborn when people express their care for you.” He said and pulled you into another kiss, and you smiled. You promised yourself that you’d be better, a nice change you were more than happy to welcome with open arms. Maybe Yoriichi Tsugikuni wasn’t so infuriating after all.

#valsvalentine #demon slayer x reader #demon slayer fanfic #demon slayer request #demon slayer #kny #kny requests #kny x reader #kny spoilers #kny hashira #yoriichi tsugikuni #kny yoriichi #demon slayer yoriichi #yoriichi x reader #yoriichi x you #yoriichi tsugikuni x reader #yoriichi #yoriichi tsugikuni x you

113 notes · View notes

trancylovecraft · 1 year ago

Text

(KNY)(MASTERLIST) You, Shibou. I, Kokoro

☆♡☆ AO3 LINK ☆♡☆

YANDERE PLATONIC KOKUSHIBO x SISTER! READER

[F/N], A shrine-maiden that was brutally killed in the Sengoku era reincarnates five hundred years later as the strongest hashira alive.

However, Her older brother turned demon is haunted by her passing every day, Grieving over the loss of his little sister.

When they finally meet each other again, He really can't blame himself for what he does next.

GENRE(s): Tragedy, Slow Burn, Heavy Angst, Dark Fantasy, Classical Driven, Action, Drama.

RECCOMENDATION: While not necessary at all, I highly suggest listening to Achilles, Come down. While reading this fanfic as it a song that helped inspire the story and mood.

Thank you!

☆♡☆CHAPTERS ☆♡☆

1, Chapter One: "Michi-Nii" 2, Chapter Two: "You crazy-ass cosmonaut, Remember your virtue, Redemption lies plainly in truth." 3. Chapter Three: "Achilles, Achilles, Achilles, jump now. You are absent of cause or excuse. So self-indulgent and self-referential, No audience could ever want you" 4. Chapter Four: "Achilles, Achilles, Achilles, come down Won't you get up off, get up off the roof?" 5. Chapter Five: "These explanations are valid. But it should be known if the same day a friend of the desperate hasn't spoken to him with an indifferent tone.." 6. Chapter Six: "Loathe the way they light candles in Rome. But love the sweet air of the votives" 7. Chapter Seven: "The souvenirs of a lost country, the hope of a promised land. This divorce between the woman of her life-" 8. Chapter Eight: "You’re scaring us and all of us, some of us love you Achilles, it’s not much but there’s proof" 9. Chapter Nine: "Feel your breath course frankly below and see life as a worthy opponent" 10. Chapter Ten: "I witness that a lot of people are dying because they consider that life is not worth living." 11. Chapter Eleven: "He changed a lot after that and that this story had-" 12. Chapter Twelve: "Do not waste yourself on this roof" 13. Chapter Thirteen: "You will not be more than a rat in the gutter" 14. Chapter Fourteen: "..So much more than a rat" 15. Chapter Fifteen: "Soldier on, Achilles." 16. Chapter Sixteen: "You crave the applause yet hate the attention, Then miss it" 17. Chapter Seventeen: "But it's cool in a weird way that I wish I could be" 18. Chapter Eighteen: "Where you go, I'm going." 19. Chapter Nineteen: "Your act is a ruse."

(INCOMPLETE, MORE SOON)

-----

SIDE-WORKS

Mitsuri x Reader: You, Tsuri

You, 'Katsu.

Daughter of Ōkami (To Scorch The Sun)

222 notes · View notes

lili-harg · 9 months ago

Note

my my, a new kny writer? thats awesome!!

hello, as a little treat, could a request maybe kanzaki aoi with a s/o who is a cat owner? i think scenarios like seeing the cats furr everywhere and purring would be adorable ♪

Kanzaki Aoi x S/o cat owner

• Gender Neutral Reader

• Hello how are you? I hope very well, I really appreciate you being the first request I have, I hope you like it and I want you to know that it is my first time writing a request and also for this character, so I hope you enjoy it 💗

❀.°• ─ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─ •°.❀

It was a sunny morning in the butterfly mansion, you had woken up early and you had the feeling that today would be a calm day, or at least that's what you thought; since you wouldn't think that returning from doing the errands assigned by Aoi to be stopped by some sounds.

You stopped when you heard some sad and weak meows, apparently fate knew that you have a weakness for felines so you decided to follow the sound to guide you and find the owners of it; After walking a few meters you found a small and adorable black cat, it had big green eyes, but they looked sad. You decided to take the little one in your hands so you could examine him and find the cause of the pain, at first the little cat tried to put up a little resistance, you clearly noticed that he was scared, so with all the gentleness you had you tried to pet him and let him know that You had no intention of hurting him.

After a few minutes you managed to move the animal a little and saw a wound on its back leg, it was not very serious but clearly it should be healed before it gets worse, so you decided that it would be best to take it to the farm to cure it. "I hope Aoi doesn't mind me bringing another cat" you say remembering when a few months ago you had to insist to your stubborn girlfriend to convince her that adopting your cat "Matsu" would be a good idea, it took time but you did it; although you don't count on the fact that you had to work twice as hard for a week on the farm and then indulge her and thank her. But anyway. You quickened your steps after picking up the little cat ready to transport him to the butterfly farm. It didn't take you long, so when you were already at the door you decided that you would take the animal to your room and then you would think about how to tell your girlfriend about the matter.

You clearly didn't count on the fact that Aoi had already sensed your presence, so seeing you quickly lock yourself in your room caught her attention. Heading to your room she knocked on your door

- "y/n why the rush to get into your room?" she asked, clearly nervous, you didn't know what excuse to come up with, since you weren't planning on being discovered by Aoi so quickly, "come on, y/n, think of something quickly."

-"I was very tired and I decided that the best thing would be to take a nap"

answer yourself, trying to sound as realistic as possible.

-"A nap at twelve noon" she says clearly suspecting something

-"I really need one because I'm a little weak from my walk"

your doubtful tone betrayed your nervousness, you cursed your poor ability to lie

-"y/n you worry me, I'm going in" and without even listening to any of your hasty excuses for not doing so, the blue eye opens your door. giving up you decide that there is no point in trying to hide the small feline that was lying on your bed.

Aoi sighs, clearly not very surprised by the small animal, everyone on the farm knew about your little adoration of cats.

-"So this was what you wanted to hide from me" he says looking at you

-" I'm sorry but it's urgent, little Sugi needs help"

-"Oh! he already has a name" she says trying to hide his smile, because she doesn't want to admit that she finds it cute the weakness that your partner has for these animals

- "yes I thought about it while I was heading here, but look" you say pointing to his foot, he should cure it.

The little sugi was no longer meowing but his lack of emotion was still noticeable. After Aoi's speech to you about the responsibility it would be to have another cat and how you should take care of this cat and Matsu yourself, they got to work and started healing the little one. After a few weeks, the new feline member of the Sugi farm had recovered successfully, all the girls loved the little one, except your other beloved pet Matsu, who was not very happy with the fact of having to share the attention that everyone had previously given him. The farm was given to you, Aoi, the girls and even the patients.

Some days you and Aoi had to deal with their antics like when you had to clean up the two cats after they got into the fountain and got dirty, or when you got into a fight over yarn and broke a vase, (you had to convince Aoi that he doesn't take them and that you would buy another vase).

But despite all those antics, over time Matsu got used to Sugi's presence and they began to get along better, so everything became calmer and so one night in which you and Aoi were reading quietly in your room, They were accompanied by the presence of the two felines, you were very happy to be able to share such a quiet and special moment with your beautiful girlfriend and the little kittens that you adored so much.

44 notes · View notes

2demon2slayer · 1 year ago

Text

to my fellow kny artists in particular, but also the greater fandom at large,

#kny #demon slayer #scribblings #poll tag for polls #i'm not tagging all these demon eyes #i love drawing eyes in my sketchbook. it connects me to my past 13 yo self #we both love drawing anime eyes #kaigaku has cuttlefish pupils in the diagram btw #in case you're unfamiliar

69 notes · View notes

another-lost-mc · 4 months ago

Text

Obey Me x Demon Slayer: How It Works

The Devildom has multiple factions of demons that have their own power hierarchy. They act as a system of checks and balances for each other as well as the demonic royal family - one faction, if strong enough, has the potential to tip the realm into chaos. In the past, the realm was in a fluctuating state of turmoil while demons fought each other to secure their power and prestige. These conflicts happened less and less as the smaller or weaker demon factions were absorbed or wiped out completely by their stronger counterparts.

Similar to the Ars Goetia, Muzan and the Twelve Kizuki are their own sect of high-ranking demons. They have a reputation for being ruthless, cunning, and extremely violent. They are their own special force, not utilized on a battlefield like legions of lesser demons but tasked with subterfuge or the assassination of powerful enemies instead. Due to their bloodthirsty nature, they spend most of their time in the human world. In the past, they were known to hunt humans and other races for sport and consumption freely, although that behaviour is less tolerated in modern times; now they rely on formal bargains or pacts to satiate their hunger for human souls and flesh. Some of the demon lords look down on the Twelve Kizuki because of their unrepentant fondness for murder and mayhem (the demon lords that still engage in those activities do so more discreetly).

When Lucifer and his brothers fell, the balance of power in the Devildom shifted. Due to their unique circumstances, the Avatars of Sin were not only given considerable rank and prestige upon arriving in the Devildom, but they became firmly entrenched with Diavolo when Lucifer swore his loyalty to him. This was a fundamental change for the rest of the demon nobility and everyone else got bumped down a peg or two in the hierarchy to make way for Lucifer and his siblings who now sit very close to the top. More importantly, that gave Diavolo a considerable boost of strength and made it easier for him to enact his controversial policies to secure long-term peace between the three realms.

By the time the exchange program commences, Muzan is on par strength-wise with the most powerful demon lords of the Ars Goetia, with the Twelve Kizuki ranked by power level below him. There's some lingering bitterness that they were so easily shoved aside for the demon brothers compared to the past when they were given preferential treatment by prior kings and queens.

Most of the Twelve Kizuki lurk in the human world to avoid interacting with the demon brothers. Muzan begrudgingly partakes in high-society functions and shows support for Diavolo, but his true feelings and motivations are a mystery. Opinions about him, the Twelve Kizuki and their loyalty are divisive amongst the other demon lords. The behaviour of Muzan's underlings is more closely scrutinized by Diavolo as he seeks to avoid acts of aggression or hostility with the Sorcerer's Society or Celestial Realm.

A/N: I posted this on my personal blog but thought it was worth sharing here too. Demon Slayer has potential as a fandom crossover because of with its own twist on demon lore. Those demons interact within the world they share with humans in a very predatory dynamic which allows for exploration of dark and menacing demon activity, which OM seems to be lacking more often than not these days. Demon Slayer specifically forces that issue with its own cast of demon characters that aren't looking to make friends or play nicely with the other races. Muzan’s origin story as a demon and his ability to create demons is different in this AU than in the KNY canon.

#jes.rambles #crossover: om x kny #obey me au

18 notes · View notes

mushroomly · 1 year ago

Text

Little drabble thingy

Tws: death, angst, spoilers

So last night I’m falling asleep and I was thinking

like a 10 yo kny obsessed reader gets isekaid to kny

She knows everything about the plot

befriends Hashiras

But especially Sanemi and Giyuu (SaneGiyuu in this)

This takes place about 2-3 years before main plot

she begins training

(for plot purposes, she uses a breathing style called cloud breathing. You’ll see why later)

Anyway

she trains for couple years

attends final selection at about twelve (advanced, ok?)

Meets Muichiro

she had gotten bounced between Hashiras for a while before she settled on her breathing style

but now it’s just w Sanemi, Giyuu, and Mui, who have the closest breathing styles to her

anyway

cute teenager crush between mui and reader

(forgot to mention that reader sees sanegiyuu as father figures)

Reader isn’t Hashira level, but she’s considered a tsuguko

Okay

Reader and Mui get together

Then infinity castle happens

Muzan figures out somehow that she knows everything

And has Nakime isolate her, only letting her hear the death announcements

Cue crow saying “The mist Hashira, Tokito Muichiro, has fallen to upper moon one!”

Breakdown ensues

Reader activates slayer mark attempting to get out of there, to get to her friends, family

Nakime dies, reader is spat into the open, fights Muzan, you know the drill

Post battle, she passes out (injuries, slayer mark, etc)

when she wakes up, she breaks down again

it’s not just that Muichiro died; it’s that, despite all of her knowledge, she was unable to do anything

she was powerless

sanemi and Giyuu comfort her

she withdraws for a while, before realizing her days with sanemi and Giyuu are numbered (slayer mark :()

Attempts to live her best life w them

Both turn 25, both die

while reader was friends w kamaboko squad, she was closer w Hashiras

she awaited the day that she turned 25 (ik this makes no sense, but reader biologically and somewhat mentally remained 14. This isn’t meant to be an actual writing, just a though I had lol)

On her death bed, she sees sanegiyuu

she dies

runs up

Hugs them while crying happy tears

“Dads!”

“Hey, little gremlin!” (Sanemis nickname for u)

Muichiro shows up (u don’t notice, too busy hugging lol)

“Sorry I’m late…”

reader looks up at sanegiyuu and they’re like ‘go on’

she runs up to Muichiro, adorable hug whilst reader sobs occurs

“Never leave me again like that! Never!”

this made a heck of a lot more sense in my head lol

I literally almost cried thinking about it

35 notes · View notes

neiptune · 2 years ago

Text

˗ˏˋ KNY MASTERLIST ´ˎ˗

☰ MULTI CHARACTERS

hashira x crushing so hard they do/say something impulsive (extra: mitsuri)

hashira x first i love you (extra: gyomei)

hashira x things you do that they're weak for

☰ SHINAZUGAWA SANEMI

rain is bad luck

a woman is no man

be wary of white haired strangers

twelve months

if i get burned, at least we were electrified

in each world, in every life

slithered here from eden, just to sit outside your door

you give me bad ideas

the exact same way

☰ RENGOKU KYOJURO

should've known better

a day worth celebrating

☰ UZUI TENGEN

worst boyfriend ever

#kny masterlist

93 notes · View notes

echantedtoon · 10 hours ago

Text

Twelve Days Of Kny Day 3 Mistletoe

(Mitsuri x Karaku I dunno who made the edited Pic below. I found it on Pinterest but will credit the person if I find them.)

@hawnkoii @lavenderdropp

How could he confess to one so beautiful and so sweet that he had fallen in love with her?

She'd never want him. Not in the way he felt. They were friends. Good friends. And he didn't want to mess it up by confessing unwanted feelings and then making things awkward for them both and costing him a meaningful friendship. He'd rather stay best friends with her forever than possibly lose her because of his own selfish desires.

Besides with his reputation she'd never want to be with a known vagabond.

So he kept his mouth shut. Smiled. And then offered to help her decorate her house for the giant Christmas party she was throwing . Even wrangled his brothers into helping on the condition they could come too and help themselves to the delicious foods that'd be there. Occupying himself in untangling Christmas lights, dusting off old ornaments, and helping to haul in a real life tree hissing at the pricks those stupid pine needles gave him. But he grinned and bore it if nothing else to distract himself.

He wasn't even planning on going near her at the party. Just stand off to the sides sipping on some over priced eggnog and occasionally chat with someone who passed by. Which is why he nearly choked on his drink when a certain girl bubbly bounced up to him with a bright smile.

"KARAKU, YOU'RE HERE!"

"M-Mitsuri?! AH! I MEAN-" He coughed before casually leaning back against the wall. "It's good to see you again. T-This party is really something huh? Im glad it turned out so well."

She again smiled and again that warm feeling bubbled up in him again. "I'm glad too. Oh. Here." She held up the package making him blink. "I got you something. A small thanks for helping me out so much."

There was a silence between the two as the air was filled with other peoples' chatter and light Christmas playing from a few speakers as green eyes stared at the shiny white box tied together with a glittery green ribbon. It looked so simple and yet so pretty. And color coded to his usual theme. And she had gotten that? For him? Why? His eyes looked almost lost between her and the gift which did make her wonder if something was wrong for a moment but Karaku silenced those thoughts when he reached out his hands and slowly ever so gently took the box away from her and in his own hands still staring wide eyed at it. Like it was the very first time he had ever gotten a gift before.

"For..me?," he asked looking at her again as if to make sure he heard Mitsuri right. When she nodded he silently looked back to the gift. "...Thank you. But I can't open this."

She frowned. "Why? What's wrong? Did you not want anyone to buy you something?"

"Wha- N-No, no, no! Not that. I-It's not time for gift givin' yet. It'd be unfair ta everyone else if I opened one early. 'Specially to the lil ones and Marnie."

"Oh.." She smiled and pointed back towards the tree. "Then do you wanna come with me and put it back under the tree?"

He looked up surprised. "Together? UH! I m-mean sure!" He cleared his throat again sinking further into his coat's hood. "That'd be the responsible thing to do."

Mitsuri smiled again. Red rushed to his face when she gently grabbed at his arm and pulled him towards the direction of the giant tree outside and for some reason he couldn't fathom he didn't stop her. Green eyes could only gaze at her and her perfect face. The face lightly cupping her face just the right way. The frost that had caught onto her lashes twinkling in the lights like little stars orbiting your beautiful green eyes which was as reflective as mirrors and just as shiny. Her cheeks a beautiful shade not unlike a sweet rose. But eventually green eyes gazed towards her lips. Curled up in a smile, and a pink not unlike a peach and maybe just as sweet if he was honest. The man nearly ran into her body when she stopped in front of the tree the lights shining on her just the right way to give him the impression she were an angel. A sight he was hesitant to leave when he bent down to carefully place her gift down with the other beautiful ones as it too shined under the lights before he stood back up to look at her again. Huh. And she were both closer than he remembered. Just a few inches from one another twinkling under the lights. And she blinked at the sudden closeness too. Face going a dim pink and a few chuckles from the moment escaping her. Barely anyone was outside now, too busy inside mingling, eating the food, and enjoying the party. So it was just them two. Alone out here with nothing but each other for company. His mind felt completely blank and numb but in a good way, compelling him to reach his hands up and cup a cheek of hers something his rational brain wouldn't allow himself to do. Inches away now. She didn't move away.

He stared at the woman in front of him, this silly silly woman with the beautifully flowing hair and the cute smile. If he was watching this as an outsider, he would've laughed at how they were literally just friends less than a while ago, but right now it didn't seem any of that or anything else mattered. Not even the topic they had been discussing just a few seconds ago. The wind blew some more rustling the snowflakes and driving the intoxicating sweet scents from the banquet around them more. And blowing some of that pretty hair into his face, which he immediately reached to pull away and she made no move to stop him from doing that. Or removing the hand that now cupped her cheek. Maybe it really was a mutual madness they both shared or some form of chaos in their lives, but right now....With them being so close...And so vulnerable. It was only natural of course-.. It's what soulmates do-.. Of course they would since-...

They kissed.

How ironic is was neither noticed the small Mistletoe placed on the tree above them.

#demon slayer #kimetsu no yaiba #kny #Twelve Days Of Kny #karaku #karaku x Mitsuri #mitsuri kny #kny mitsuri #mitsuri kanroji #demon slayer mitsuri #mitsuri kanjiro #mitsuri kanjori

12 notes · View notes

herehavesomeheadcanons · 2 years ago

Text

On the sixth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me… 6 Gingerbread Houses! (Part 2!)

Ky Luc

🤎🔹As usual, he's down for anything! It really doesn't take much to convince him to do something with you.

🤎🔹He'll manage to hunt down some premade houses and a variety of candies. He might have to fight some horsemen for it, but it's not like that's hard for the fifth Progenitor!

🤎🔹Ky enjoys the decorating process, and he's decently good at it. He's not Urd-level, but then again, very few are! Unfortunately, he gets bored fast and decides to annoy you instead. There is a very good chance you'll end up in an all-out food war!

🤎🔹Both houses look somewhat decent, if you don't count the mess caused when Ky challenged you to a frosting and sprinkles war!

Mepphy

💖😈Oh he is all in. The minute you bring up gingerbread houses, his eyes light up!

💖😈The two premade houses you got aren't nearly enough to satisfy him. He ends up getting at least ten more, as well as several more pounds of candy! You'll have a whole city!

💖😈He has a lot of fun decorating your gingerbread city! He's like a little child, honestly. If there's one thing that brings out Mepphy's inner child, it's gingerbread houses!

💖😈Everything is covered in pink sprinkles and icing. Everything. Including him and you.

Ryuunosuke Akutagawa

🖤‼️What? What is this nonsense? He really doesn't understand or see the point in this. He should be off killing people and proving his strength to Dazai! It'll take a bit of pleading to get him to give in.

🖤‼️You manage to convince Chuuya to go out and get the things you need. Two houses and a bunch of candies and sprinkles.

🖤‼️Aku has a sloppy and half-hearted method of decorating. You might be able to get him to actually try if you involve a certain suicidal maniac! ("You know, I bet Dazai would LOVE to see our gingerbread houses-")

🖤‼️Your house looks fantastic. If you used Aku's need to impress Dazai, his looks decent as well.

Enmu

🖤🚂Again, he's confused why you want to imitate the humans, but he's willing to join in! Anything for you!

🖤🚂Unfortunately, you have to make your own gingerbread. Neither of you know how. Welp, time to shank a human for their gingerbread recipe!

🖤🚂After you manage to get the gingerbread made, decorating is chaos. You definitely made a gingerbread train instead of a house.

🖤🚂Yeah it's a mess.

Sakuya Watanuki

🌳☢️So… you've been dragged along to the annual Team Melancholy gingerbread house competition. Sakuya just wanted you there to keep him sane (and out of fistfights with Belkia).

🌳☢️Reiterating what I've already said: everyone gets their own house and candy supplies. You have one hour to build and decorate your house. Then, everyone votes on who's is the best.

🌳☢️Wanting to impress you, Sakuya actually tries to make his house look good. And he immediately gets made fun of by Belkia, which starts a fist fight.

Mahiru Shirota

🤎🙂He thinks it's a wonderful idea! He enjoys creative tasks, and doing one for fun (as opposed to because nobody else volunteered) is appealing to him.

🤎🙂Uh-uh. No premade houses. Making the gingerbread yourself is more authentic! No worries, he knows what he's doing. You could probably get away with sitting back and letting him handle the baking.

🤎🙂Mahiru is borderline obsessive with his decorating. If you're going to do something, you should do it right! Just let him do his thing.

🤎🙂His house looks absolutely awesome, thanks to his attention to detail. Both houses are great, since you got to design them!

49 notes · View notes

demonateher · 10 months ago

Text

Shit post? Personal post? I don’t know, but it's gonna be KnY related, so here it goes.

I have been a fan of martial arts for longer than I've been practicing them. It's the nerd-drive. I'm not especially good at any of them, but I've done something or other relatively consistently for the last fifteen-ish years, depending on what has been available to me wherever I was living. That means moving far away every few years or so has made a good excuse to quit the ones I did with any consistency, but it's much harder to quit for other reasons. It's easy to feel guilted into sticking around, especially after you've been there a while.

I did Bujinkan a year or so, and it made me feel very cool for all the different skills it covered and all the nerdery that came with it and I was proud of the badass bruises I got, but I also felt like the porcelain doll in a dojo of giant gym bros and I knew I was both keeping them from practicing at their level and that I was bound to get a serious injury sooner or later. Quitting that one was difficult because the gym bros were sad and the sensei was finding every workaround he could for my polite excuses.

And I felt exactly like Zenitsu trying to run away from Gramps, and I was like, "whoa, life imitates art."

Fast-forward to now, I just feel it's time to move on from--or at least take a long, formal break from--naginata, the martial art I started almost twelve years ago and have progressed the most in. I hadn't been going to practice much since starting a new job anyway, and I was already kind of wanting to quit before then, but I kept going because I felt pressure to, whether real or imagined. Today I finally signed the paperwork to exit for a while, and now I am officially not practicing any martial arts.

And it fell on a day I happen to be writing Senjuro fic.

What.

9 notes · View notes

narutooz · 4 years ago

Text

Saw this 30 days kimetsu no yaiba challenge on Instagram, because I am lazy to do it everyday hence, I typed it out in one go. So here's my answer :😍

1.tomioka giyuu😍

2.Nezuko

3. Muzan I guess hahaha

4. Yushiro because he remembered tamayo-sama till the present day😭

5. Gyutaro and Daki

6. Tanjirou-zenitsu-inosuke (u cant hate them tho)

7. Of coz iguro and mitsuri 😍

8. Aoi, because I scared fighting demon🤣

9. U knw the demon enmu(he is cruel to make tanjirou family who had passed come back to life in dream and killed them again in front of him)

10. Water breathing style🤭

11. Sabito, (author shouldn't make him died at first u knw I want see him fighting alongside with giyuu)

12. -

13. Kamado siblings vs. Rui epi 19 (who doesn't love this scene)

14. When tanjirou struggling turning back into human

15. Nezuko, i like her design, she's cute.

16. Tanjirou

17. Final battle and sunrise countdown arc (yes it was so sad with all the hashiras being killed but these arc lead towards peace they've yearned for)

18. The kamado's ( I like them since chapter 1, how to continue the story without liking these two😭)

19. Water hashira 🤭

20. Giyuu tomioka🤭

21. Zenitsu (seriously why ppl hate him😭)

22. Muzan

23. A lot

24. Giyu tomioka 🤭

25. Uzui (the onsenn part ,haha)

26. Surprisingly ,kanao-chan🤣

27. Kanao😍

28. A lot

29. Genya (because of sanemi I guess)

30. Hinokami kagura 🔥

Picture credit to: cutiekanao's instagram

#demon slayer #demon slayer pillars #kamado family #kamado tanjirou #nezuko kamado #demon slayer kanao #mitsuri x obanai #demon slayer muzan #30 days challenge #genya shinazugawa #kimetsu no yaiba sanemi #tomioka giyū #demon slayer giyuu tomioka #kimetsu no yaiba #kny zenitsu #kny inosuke #kny #twelve upper moon #final arc kny

14 notes · View notes

trancylovecraft · 1 year ago

Text

(KNY) YANDERE PLATONIC! KOKUSHIBO x SISTER READER: You, Shibou. I, Kokoro (CHAPTER TWELVE)

Previous Chapter ☆♡☆ Masterlist ☆♡☆ Next Chapter

AO3 link

CHAPTER TWELVE: "Do not waste yourself on this roof"

Scarlet iron ore is the material used to forge the swords that the slayers use. It is native to only a single mountain in japan referred to as the sunlight mountain where it is bathed in eternal day all year round.

The iron absorbs sunlight, Making it the sole property that makes it effective against demon's once decapitated.

Everything was white noise, A screaming hum ringing in [F/N]'s ears.

Her eyelids clenched together, The blinding light outside of them already so bright that it could affect her through them. She would of squirmed, But her body felt like it was tied down by anchors and numb to the touch.

She could barely feel her fingers.

Her eyelids were just as heavy, Even opening them was just a struggle as she lifted them and instantly got stung by the glare sitting up above her.

[F/N] groaned, Her numb body starting to regain her sensed as she tossed and turned on the bed. Fingers twitching, Eyelids fluttering as she started to writhe around upon what seemed to be a hospital bed.

Noises around her, Thumping, Footsteps that seemed to be rushing towards her bedside yelling something [F/N] couldn't make out. It sounded as if she was underwater, The noises muffled by her submersion under what felt like the entire ocean crashing upon [F/N]'s form.

As her feeling was regained, She felt as if she was covered within bundles of cloth. Not just from the light blanket that was snuggled over her form but instead it was all around her body.

Her face, Her arms, Her legs and her torso. They all felt like they were bound with chains made of woven wool and fabric. It was uncomfortable, Making [F/N] squirm and groan even more as she tried to break free from their hold.

A dark shadow was casted over her vision, Blocking out the flash directly above her. It gave [F/N] time to adjust to her surroundings as her blurry vision tried to focus in on what exactly she was seeing above her.

It was a figure, It was a person, At least that's what [F/N] could make out anyways. It was made out of many shapes and angles. A round and soft jaw with strong square shoulders, They were small, [F/N] could tell that much.

She squinted, Trying to get a better look at the face of the figure. Their hair was dark and it faded into a lavender hue, Their eyes matched the colour perfectly too and it seemed like they had some kind of accessories in their hair.

It was Shinobu.

Shinobu's eyes were looking over her frantically, [F/N] now recognised the expression painting her as shock and determination as [F/N] felt her hands start to run across her body. She seemed to be yelling, But [F/N] couldn't for the life of her understand what it was.

But as [F/N] looked closer and closer at the face of Shinobu, [F/N] could see some.. Irregularities.

For one, The soft jaw that Shinobu had sported was still very much there but seemed more defined now. Her body was more mature now, The small girl that Shinobu always was seemed to have grown an extra inch or two.

[F/N] tried to speak, To question where she was or how she had gotten here. But it only came out as choked gargles and coughs as she sputtered them out.

Her voice, It was unrecognisable. It didn't even sound human as her lungs suddenly shot up in flames, Making her roll around in agony.

She was steadied by the firm hands of Shinobu, Who still seemed to be yelling as the people she was calling for came rushing into the room. More and more figures surrounding her, One's [F/N] only had a flicker of recognition for.

She lay there, Held down by a strange looking caricature of her friend and covered in what [F/N] only now recognised as bandages. Her eyes bloodshot and her body was covered in her own boiling sweat.

[F/N] was confused, Dazed and absolutely terrified. The last thing she remembered was a sword stabbing into what looked to be a hulking body of a demon, Then there was a bright white flash, Ending with the most agonising moments of [F/N]'s life before passing out.

She whined like a caged animal, Trapped and held down onto her bed as she cried out gargled words and choked on her own saliva.

Her thoughts were just as muddled as her mind was, Screaming incoherent rants and rambles that made her want to holler out obscenities. Though only one was understandable, Only one she could think.

What happened?

☆♡☆

"You've never done anything for me.. When have you ever given me the debt I have been own?"

[F/N]'s voice echoed through the cold halls of the haiden, Her plight was whispered back to her in the most condescending and mocking tone. [F/N]'s tears dripped down onto the dusty wooden floor, Hot boiling liquid that stung her face now wetting the floorboards.

Her voice was shaken, It was flimsy by the tone and sounded like it would shatter at any given moment. But it was also angry, It was raging. [F/N]'s heart swelled with an undying lucidity that she just couldn't break down any longer.

That spark, She recognised it now. It was the candles in Osaka, The ones that were lit so poorly by the locals, The one's that made her so very irritated before.

But now the flickering embers were a raging inferno, It was scorching, It was fire that could melt steel from a blade. It burned inside her now, The climax of it's fury turning into a callous wildfire.

The votives were poorly lit, The care that [F/N] use to put into lighting her own was gone too, Now burning the foliage and ferns around her in it's wake.

Her hands gripped the decaying floorboards. Her teeth started to grind against each other, Near foaming at the mouth like a rabid dog ready to bite. Veins were visible in her forehead as she spoke.

"I've worshipped you for years and you leave me with nothing, I.. I trusted that you would make everything okay, I wanted it to be okay! But it's.. Not.." She spat out, Trying to keep her calm was a Sisyphean task now.

She couldn't calm the candles, She couldn't whittle down the embers. Now only stoking the flames as she continued to rant on.

"At this point I don't know what's worse.. Me just worshipping a deity who isn't even there, Or me worshipping a deity that just doesn't care. And I don't know which is the truth anymore." [F/N] said, Getting up from her position of grovelling on the ground.

Her knees were stained with dust and dirt, Her kimono was ragged and near falling off of her shoulders. Her eyes were a faint red and her lip was twitching, Begging to let out a scream or a cry, Anything to express how she was feeling.

The mission in Osaka, [F/N] recalled it so vividly in her mind that it might as well have happened a minute ago. It had went wrong, So very wrong. It was the day she found out what the eighth form of soul breathing was really capable of.

They had ran into Lower moon one, Found him with an iron grip on the festival and feeding on the people there. They had tried to fight him: Shinobu, Mitsuri and [F/N]. But it was futile, They were barely enough to defeat him before [F/N] had to take drastic measures.

She didn't remember much after that, Only waking up within the butterfly mansion months after they had gone to Osaka. She had been put into a coma for over a year, Barely surviving her encounter with them.

Though through the foggy mist of the events that happened there, [F/N] did remember one thing:

Her candle went unanswered.

[F/N] sniffled sharply as she stumbled a few steps towards the old altar, The spiders and beasties nestled in it before were long scared off by her banshee like wails as she approached the structure.

Her hands rested on it, Her eyes landing on a candle.

[F/N]'s face contorted into the calmest expression she could muster, Yet her eyelids stayed wide open and her nose still snarled.

"S-Speak to me Inari, Tell me that I'm wrong. Tell me that I'm overreacting and you really do care for me after all.." [F/N] whispered to the candle, Her eyes examining the melted wax. She was expecting something, Anything.

The only response she got was the defeaning silence of her own isolation, Her own loneliness within the winding hall of the haiden. There was no answer from her patron, No response for all of her hard work over the years.

[F/N] stayed deathly still, Her nails dug into the edge of the altar as she waited by the candle. Her eyes pleaded with it silently, Tears running down her face as her entire body started to shudder.

Nothing, Absolutely nothing came to solve her panic.

The grip on the altar was released.

[F/N] stumbled back, Staring blankly at the altar.

She was still, Unmoving.

She stood there for several minutes, Just blindly looking at the structure.

All before she let out a single noise.

"Hah..-" [F/N] wheezed. It was a laugh, It was one precise laugh. The corners of [F/N]'s lips started to curve, Turning up into a tight lipped grin as her eyes were dead open, Staring wildly at the altar.

"Hah-.. Hah- Haha-" [F/N] started to giggle and by all means it sounded normal, Echoing back to her within the expanse of the room. Her body began to tense up, Hands raising to a mouth as she giggled harder.

"Haha- Hahahaha- Hahaha-" Wheezes were taken in-between every breath [F/N] took as she started to laugh harder. Her knees starting to shake as her smile turned into a contorted grin, Eyes still set on the altar.

"HahaHAHAha- HAH- Hah-" It was wild now, Her laughter turned into cackling, It was mad and hysterical like a hyena ready to pounce onto it's prey. She snorted, Hands clasping over her mouth to try and conceal her insane bouts of noise.

[F/N] screamed.

Her laughter was turned into wails, Her smile dropping down into an enraged maw. She howled, A strained cry that was mangled as it reverberated around her echo chamber.

She took a thumping step towards the altar, Her entire body weight hitting the floorboards and shaking the very foundations of the building she stood in. She marched forward, Each vibration ran through the ground as she walked.

As she went she spotted an old candle lighter, A long metal stick that was used to reach the candles too far out of a maidens grasp. Though it wasn't safe from [F/N]'s as she lowered down to pick it up on her march.

She approached slowly, Her laughter was nothing but strained shrieks now whispered under her ragged breath.

The grasp on the candle-lighter was gripped so tight that it started to leave marks in [F/N]'s hand, But that didn't matter anymore as she reached the altar.

She stood before it, Taking in the lost grace of it's construction from what was so grand before. How far it had fallen, How beautiful it use to be, Now turned into a mockery of what it was.

[F/N] raised the candle-holder above her head, The metal still shining from the dim-light the creaked door shown.

She looked at it all once more, A sad nostalgia playing on her face for only a split second. Hesitancy maybe, But it was all washed away by the actions that followed.

"FAKE!" [F/N] hollered out her cries, The candle-holder was swung down with force akin to a god's as she smashed the altar of her own.

The wood burst out from the structure, Lumber falling and breaking down from it's place. The used candles dropped down to the ground, Clattering and rolling away as the splinters spread across the floor.

[F/N]'s hands raised once more, Her eyes wild and angry as she looked at her work. But it wasn't done, It wasn't over. She raised the candle-lighter, High above her head. And this time there was no more hesitancy left in her swing.

She brought it down.

"CRUEL!"

Vases fell off from the counter, Shattering and spreading porcelain everywhere.

"KILLER!"

The noise screamed at her in echoes, Breaking wood and snapping of twine hollering of their destruction.

"MONSTER!"

The whole thing collapsed, [F/N] kept beating the corpse of the altar, Eyes wild and filled with fury.

"MEANINGLESS!"

Her wails and shrieks felt so raw and visceral, It was like mountain lion's scream down to the exact decibel. Coming from a place [F/N] never knew existed.

"WORTHLESS EXCUSE OF A HUMAN BEING!" [F/N] screamed, The candle-lighter swinging down one final time. It smashed into the floorboards, Causing an eruption of more splinters as the candle-lighter got stuck within the dent.

[F/N] tugged at it, The pushed end of the candle-lighter refused to come out of the crater she made. Though it wouldn't budge, The tug was enough to pull [F/N] out of whatever break she was going through.

The candle-lighter was dropped from her hands, Grip releasing from the tool as it clattered to the floor.

[F/N] stumbled back, Steps pattering against the aching boards.

She looked at what she had done, What mess now lain strewn across the floor. Parts and pieces, Splintered shards of bark and fallen candles surrounded her feet. Vases which contained such masterful depictions of Shinto lore were now nothing but powder across a dusty floor.

[F/N]'s lip trembled as she still let out small guttural whimpers, Her throat hurt badly, Burning in her chest and at the back of her neck. Her fingers shook as she stood back, Hands trying to clutch a non-existent object as she realised she had dropped the candle-lighter.

"You are nothing to me.." She whispered as faint as the cold chill running through the room, Her bloodshot eyes watered up scorching tears as she stepped back even further. Shaking her head as they started to fall.

"You are nothing.." She mumbled, Her expression crawling into a snarl as her forlorn face was quickly covered up by the burning embers of the candles. Her teeth being bore once more, Saliva dripping down her chin.

She stared, Her eyes reflecting the votive's light as a sickening spark grew in her eyes. An idea was rearing it's head, And it was horrid and deformed.

"I-If you haven't been listening to me at all, Then.. Then.." [F/N] paused, Thinking over her words.

Her hands clenched into fists.

"I'll make sure you'll hear me now." [F/N] breathed out. Her respiration shaking as her body snapped around, A given mission now assigned to her as she marched out of the haiden creating heavy thumps in her wake.

The tears falling down her face barely grazed her any longer, Her footsteps were calculated and determined with every press of her sole on the floorboards. Her eyebrows were furrowed as she advanced down the hall.

She passed the tapestries and banners displayed on the decaying walls, Her pace quickening to avoid their contents. They depicted such beautiful tales, A kitsune and a dragon, The gods in all their fallen glory.

They all mocked her, What she had become. The figures that brought her such solace within her soul, She had looked at them with such pride before, Standing before the tapestries to admire them.

But she barely looked at the obvious flaws in the linework as she stormed past.

Despite the way her steps were thought out, She wasn't sure about what she was about to do. She didn't even know what she was going to do, But that didn't matter as her anger triumphed over it all.

You can't put out a raging wildfire with doubt or confusion, It didn't care about what it burned or what was in it's path. It just kept on going along with the rapid pace of her steps, Eyes dead set on the pathway in front of her.

☆♡☆

[F/N] stood standing on the docks, Feet firmly planted against the rickety old wood.

The void outside was as dark as ever, A monotonous hum reverberating within the shadowed world she was living in. The only thing to break it up was the sloshing of chilling water below her and the wind travelling throughout the cavern.

The shrine before the girl stood as tall as ever, Two stories as tall as a mountain were looming over the girl and casted a shadow to her. Wooden shutter windows lined every wall in a pattern, Stone lanterns hanging from the walls were breaking up the gaps in between them.

How they were lit, [F/N] didn't know. She wasn't focusing that however as she was currently measuring the length of the building.

The shrine was always abnormally tall for it's kind, Shinto shrines often not being as tall as hers was. This one measured to a whopping fifty feet, Sixty if you count the elevated position it sat upon on the docks.

The first floor consisted of about thirty, The second being about twenty. Since this was the less developed version of her shrine the third floor hadn't been constructed and had gave away the extra metres it usually held on top.

The extra hallways that surrounded the main body of the building were jutted out from the sides, Surrounding and making a barrier around the main dock that sprouted all of the other ones.

[F/N] looked at the juts sticking out of the walls. The rims surrounding the wooden windows, The dip in the firm bricks that could make for a good foothold. She calculated her moves, Sweat dripping down her brow and pooling in her palms.

The tears still flown down her face, They were burning her. They fuzzed up her vision and made her sniffle, Her breath irregular as she needed to make sharp intakes of breath every other inhale.

Her mind too was scattered like a sea of puzzle pieces. The comforting movements or the fresh sea breeze of the ocean below her wasn't enough to calm her nerves, She wasn't feeling right and she couldn't recognise that.

[F/N] took a step, Then another and another. A slow and unsure pace building up into a misguided march as she stormed towards the shrine in front of her, Brows furrowing, Hesitancy was no longer an option.

Hesitancy was her achilles heel, Her fear was what was holding her back. It didn't matter anymore, She had no more time for excuses. All her life she was waiting for some god to fix her life, To make it better. And for once, She was going to take it into her own hands.

She was done with leaving it in some false deities control. She has had no bid over her own life. She didn't get to choose on being here, She didn't draw the cards she was given at birth. But now? Now she was going to do the one deciding action, The one that would give her some semblance of agency.

As she reached the first wall of the shrine, [F/N] didn't hesitate to put a hand out and grip onto the dip of the bricks of the wall above her. Her foot did the same, Feeling around before finding a good cavity to haul her up.

[F/N] launched herself up, Her hand gripping onto a higher brick with her foot following close behind. It was steady, She realised. So she started to climb and traverse the first floor of the shrine.

The thirty feet were an easy feat to clamber up, With her time traversing the streets of buildings and rows of rocky rooftiles. It was child's play to say the least, Not even counting the worst of what she has ascended.

The first floor was done in an instant, Her hand brushing against the aquamarine rooftiles and gripping onto them to haul her upper body up. What softened muscles she had left was just enough to do so.

As she pulled herself onto the roof she took no time on crawling over to the second floor and starting her routine all over again. Rising the brick-built wall with finesse as she went further and further.

The air had gotten colder up here, The wind picking up along with it. The further she went along she could feel the force of it whipping her Samue against her skin. The chill running down her spine however wasn't enough to stop her as she kept going.

[F/N] reached the top, Throwing a leg over the final roof and rolling over onto the top of tiles. She wheezed as her back hit the rough texture of them, Her breath turning into vapour in the new cool of the air surrounding her.

She pushed herself up, Her upper body left to face the vast horizon looking out around her.

Everything was so small now, The winding docks like spiderwebs really did seem like that size now as she perceived them as the finest woven strings on a canvas. She had seemed so high now, Though even as she was, She peered up towards the sky there was no ending in sight.

"The fuck.." [F/N] breathed as she wiped the tears from her cheeks, A firm headache already starting to pound in her head from the lack of liquids. It's what kept her out of her trance as she finally got up from her sitting position.

She stumbled to her feet, Turning as she placed them upon the spine of the rooftop. She stepped forward, One foot at a time as she made her way to the end of the rooftop. Once she did, She looked down.

It was a long drop, The lanterns hanging on the first floor's walls were the size of ants now. It made her feel nauseous and almost loose her balance. She quickly steadied herself, Retaining control over her position.

If she landed right, Then maybe she could crack her skull open and make her demise come much quicker. The pain being unsavoury in her mouth.

[F/N] gulped, Eyes turning away from the drop below in favour of looking to the ebony skies above. Her lips quirked before her jaw opened up, Ready to speak as her anger returned to her.

She spread her wings, Presenting herself to the world above.

"I-Inari, Are you listening? Are you able to see what's happening?!" [F/N] yelled out in to the void, Her voice reverberating back to her within the cabin, Letting her hear the visceral crunch in her voice.

As usual, She got no answer, Letting her continue on.

"M-My life is a fucking mess because of you. Everyday I would pray to you and your altar, I performed ceremonies and dances in your honour. I-I did everything right, So why? Why have I never been compensated.." [F/N] called out, Nose scrunching up in anger.

Her arms lowered, Hands balling up into fists as she stared up into the abyss. She shook her head, Tears soaring down from her eyes.

"..Y-You know what? I never even wanted anything special, I never wanted an abundance of riches or fame wilder than my imaginations.. I.. I just wanted to be okay.." [F/N] choked out, A clear shake in her voice as she spoke.

She took a moment. Recalling back to everything she had been through, How Inari could've stepped in. She tried to remember a good moment in her life, One that made her feel any semblance of normalcy in her life.

But all she thought of was the face of a single girl, Her pink hair wrangled into braids was so vivid in her mind. But [F/N] shook it off, The feeling she got was overruled by their final talk.

"It.. It feels like you're torturing me, Inari. Why.. W-Why was I ever born?" [F/N] whispered so quietly under her breath, So shortly that it faded into her respiration. But within the echo of the cave, It was heard loud and clear for her.

"W-Why was I born without any meaning, For my entire life I have went through the motions without any semblance of it. E-Everyone else has a motivation not lost to time, So why me? Why am I the outlier!?" [F/N] screamed, Her voice guttural and coming from her chest.

For her walk of life there was no destination to where she was going, What meaning she had tried to scavenge: Protect and provide for Shizuko, Become a Hashira with Mitsuri and their pact together.

Her pacts, Her promises and her vows, She had failed every single one of them. What little hope she had held for her future back then had been long gone, There was nothing left for her to do.

She had already failed Shizuko and Mitsuri. She had failed them all. Getting out of this place was impossible.

[F/N] stood their for a long time within the silence of the rooftop. The wind ran through her hair, Flowing like ribbons within a summer's breeze. She wasn't expecting an answer, Her eyelids drooping down as she realised this.

She frowned, Letting the water fall free from her eyes.

"Even so.. I am a horrible person." [F/N] mumbled, Raising her hand to her eyeline the only thing she saw was red. The blood of hundreds, The wet crimson stain of someone else's life-force was forever imbedded onto her fingertips.

She looked back up towards the sky, Anger gone from her eyes and replaced with absolutely nothing.

"I am a monster. I am nothing but a rat in the gutter of society, It.. It would've been better if I never existed in the first place.." [F/N] said, The blood on her hands was dripping and covered her entire body in the disgusting filth of red.

It covered her head to toe, The blood of innocence she was drenched in. Almost brought back to her time on the streets, Makeshift sword in hand as she went through another and another with nothing but survival on her mind.

It was the only thing she saw when she looked in a mirror. A horrible beast covered in ichor of another, She couldn't bare to look at it, Never wanting to see the truth of who she really was inside.

Her sorrow pounded so heavy in her chest that it succeeded her heartbeat. [F/N] breathed in the cool night's air, Taking it in for a final time as she took in the sublimity of her surroundings.

The lost life that she had lived, The pointless need for her to even exist in the first place. Life isn't anything more for her. She remembered how pathetic she is, How disgusting she was to even bring attention to how she feels in the first place.

There were points in life where she would act out of place, Slightly melancholy to try and get a response asking if she was okay. A turn of the head or a persistent frown to plaster her face.

She never had gotten it however, Leaving her disappointed.

However on the very slim occasion that she did, Outliers in the statistic. She had felt seen and exposed, She hated the attention she had gotten and answered with a simple "I'm fine". She had never built up the courage to ever just admit it, To just say what she wanted to.

She chided herself for doing so, For being such a manipulative person. She shouldn't be trying to make people worry about her, They had much more important matters to be attending to than supporting a dead-weight. And coming down from her high just wasn't an option anymore

"Life is just not worth living.. There is no redemption for me, I.. I realise that now.." [F/N] commented. It was so casual, Sounded like such a normal sentence in a conversation yet words so concerning to a normal ear.

[F/N] smiled sadly, A rush of melancholia coming over her once more. Her foot edged closer to the tip of the rooftop, Bits of stone falling off into the drop below. The shine in her eyes long gone.

Kokushibo, Her captor and her proclaimed older brother. Once she did this she could finally spite him in once final move, If he really did care for her after all. She hoped he'd cry, Such a terrifying demon, What a sight it would be to see him sob.

Besides, It would be nice to have someone who would mourn.

She hoped he suffered, [F/N] prayed of whatever faith she had left in her that he would burn. [F/N] reached to the lotus hairpin she still had clipped to her hair, Yanking it out and tossing it aside further down the roof.

[F/N] smiled for one final time, Taking in her senses. The rush of the wind and the way it tickled at her skin, The fresh smell of sea-foam and the sounds of the water's waves hitting against each other.

It was the last time she would ever experience it.

"G-Goodbye, Inari. If reincarnation truly exists, I hope you do me better in a different life.." [F/N] smiled out at the void, Her voice carrying miles across the vastness of the void. Tears still fell down as her voice shook, Saliva dripping down her chin and her entire body swaying in the wind.

Her foot lifted in the air, Dangling over the drop below.

[F/N] spread her wings, Arms reaching as far as she could go as she took a deep breath in.

Closing her eyes, Her fear wouldn't hold her back any longer.

Her balance started to fail, Swaying side to side before f-

"[F/N]!!!"

A voice screamed out within the void, Echoing and hollering around like a broken tape.

Her eyes widened.

The foot that was stretched out landed back onto the tiled roof in surprise, Making her stumble back and regain her balance. She took a sharp intake of breath as her body jerked around to look at the intruder.

In that split moment, Time seemed to stop. Nothing moved, Not the waters sloshing together below nor the settling of the shrine. [F/N]'s body going rigid at the sight of the person calling her name from behind.

It's him.

Her bloodied eyes met the broken glass of Akaza's, The gold in his medallion eyes stared at her with such rage that she could feel it resonate deep within her bones.

He stood there almost as if he was about to throw a punch, His fists balled up. His fangs were bared too as he looked at what she was about to do with eyes like a wild animal, [F/N] felt her heart stop in her chest as she watched him stand on the other side of the roof.

[F/N] felt her sweat drop from her forehead, Jaw dropping as she stared at him. The mess that she was, Stared back at him with He looked back, Sheer anger burning in his eyes as he spoke.

"Just what the hell do you think you're doing?!"

☆♡☆

THUMP!

The tree slammed down onto the ground, Roots upturned as it was evicted from it's planted position within the soil.

It was a large oak tree with winding branches, The leaves were newly blossomed from the early spring and were as green as the wildlife flourishing within the forest. But that didn't matter any longer, The fresh leaves would be returned to the earth they were sprouted from.

Akaza was breathing heavily a few feet away from the crater he made, His fist still out as if to punch the ghost of the lumber he had fallen. Sweat dripped down his brow as he looked out across the forest.

It wasn't the first tree he had derooted, Nor was it any different from the other one's within the forest. He had left a trail of fallen tree's in his wake, Scaring off the critters and creatures living within them.

Akaza's fists lowered, Feeling the spring night's breeze brush against his skin and run through his salmon hair. He breathed in and out, Taking in that sublime rush of the wind and the way it flowed against him.

Akaza looked at the tree he had upturned. The roots jutted out and still held a residue of the soil still on them, He looked at the crater and saw worms and other kind of insects writhing around from the sudden exposition.

It did nothing to quell his combative rage, He had come out here to cool it down from what had happened back in the infinity castle.

He should of been doing this to a human being, Mowing them down as he was showered with their enticing blood. Akaza by all means should of been trying to find a strong opponent to go up against, Then feast on their nutritious flesh.

But he wasn't.

The nearby village that was only a mile away from his current point just didn't rile up any hunger in him. Even as he passed by undetected in the darkest corners of the streets, Watching the most delicious livestock go about their everyday lives.

Akaza just didn't feel that hungry.

He definetly should've been, With all the moon-showered time he had spent in the shrine he should of worked up a voracious appetite to say the least. But he had found that his hunger was less demanding than it usually was.

For a demon such as himself, His hunger was what defined him. Any new blood turned into the side of the night would instantly become ravenous, Instantly searching for some kind of meal to satisfy that: Even if it was their own kin.

And even after they had devoured and consumed the flesh of their meal, The hunger stuck with them forever. Eternally ravenous and cursed to eat what use to be of their own, That's how it was.

But that wasn't the case for Akaza, Not anymore at least.

Akaza rumbled, In one single movement he sat himself down onto the grassy floor. It made him angry, The thought of becoming satisfied. His hunger was what made him strong, What drove him to eat more human beings and become even more powerful.

Was he becoming weak, Him? Akaza? No way, He couldn't be weak. He was in the Kizuki, He was a demon! He should be strong, He is strong. Strength equals hunger and his satiation was not acceptable to him by any means

Was it because of what happened back in the shrine?

It did make him angry, It did. The fact that the girl he had ties to was the man he was dead-set on hunting down made him irritated. But that was just it, Irritation. It wasn't any life-changing rage or revelation that made him want to kill.

Maybe he did overreact, Only realising that as he felt the night-time grass start to tickle at his exposed skin. It was a shock, That's what it was. But why he also felt angry about it was a mystery too.

Could it be that he was feeling a sense of betrayal? Betrayal of what, Their friendship? No, They weren't friends. They were business partners and sticking to their deal of no personal relations during it.

She did say she was a Hashira, He did figure out that she was a slayer in the first place. There was nothing hidden or obscured so she didn't technically lie.

Akaza huffed, This shouldn't matter in the first place. He doesn't care if she lied or not, Why would he, They're not close and their not friends so should he even care. He shouldn't even be thinking about it this much.

So why did he have such a bad feeling in his stomach?

It wasn't just his hunger, It was something else entirely. It felt foreboding, It felt like thousands of vermin were pooling within his stomach and fighting over his organs delicious flesh.

It didn't feel good, Akaza could tell that much.

It was driving and pulling, Made him feel that something bad was going to happen. But what though? He had nothing currently on his to-do list except for the usual: Searching for the blue spider lily, Hunting down and trying to convert Hashira as well as tracking down those Kamado kids his master had spoken about.

It wasn't any of those things, The feeling just didn't match up to any of the deeds. As the grass brushed against his skin, Akaza groaned, Unable to rest his shoulders or let go of the heavy bundle of green he was clutching in his hands.

"Damnit.." Akaza mumbled through his teeth. That feeling made him want to get up, He followed it as a single hand jumped him to his feet. The bare soles of them touching the ground as he tried to concentrate on what he was experiencing.

It almost felt like a warning, Something yelling in the back of his head to do something. But when, Why or where? Back in the infinity castle or the shrine, Akaza groaned at the thought of going back and dealing with [F/N].

[F/N]

Bells rang off at the sound of her name.

That feeling, That foreboding omen was about [F/N]. Akaza could feel it.

He needed to go back, That's what he needed to do. Akaza needed to return to the shrine and… Ask more questions. Yes, That was it, Questions. He needed to ask questions about [F/N] as a Hashira as he was suppose to do.

His vision was of a man in a mask, His build completely different to her current figure. Akaza wanted to know how it was possible for them to be the same person in the first place, Be a good servant to his master and get information out of her while retaining their deal.

He shrugged it off, Easily accepting the reasoning inside his mind. Turning and taking a few steps off into the clearing he opened his mouth, Exposing his canines and starting to speak.

"Nakime!" He yelled out into the forest, Voice echoing against the timber and screaming straight back at him. Akaza stood there for a few seconds, Muscles not moving an inch before the strum of a biwa rung out.

Akaza was gone in an instant, The only trace of him left was a trail of fallen tree's to mark his movements throughout of the woods. The lingering wind brushing against the grass he once stood on before going still all together.

☆♡☆

"Just what the hell do you think you're doing?!"

The voice still shrieked in [F/N]'s ears even though the source had his jaw snapped shut.

Her red eyes looked over to the demon a few metres down the roof. She felt like her heart had stopped inside her chest, Organs failing as her body stiffened up from rigor mortis.

Though that metaphor was suppose to be more literal than it was made out to be, The person interrupting her making that impossible. [F/N] kept trying to open her mouth, Gawking at him as she tried to find the words to say.

Her mouth felt dry, Barren of words. How was he here? Why is he here? [F/N] hadn't felt his soul aura anywhere before coming up here, No trace or residue left so she would be left to do her business in peace.

Her current mental state, That must've been it. It had fogged her mind and clouded her senses, She was too caught up in what she was doing to notice his presence return from the other world.

Her mind was running miles an hour, Of course she wouldn't notice, How could she notice? Though her heart winced once she saw his expression, The baby pink hair that was blowing in the abyss' wind had morphed his face into that of a girl she knew too well.

[F/N] tried not to look at him too closely.

"Aren't you going to answer me?! The fuck do you thing you're doing up here?!" Akaza hollered, The sheer volume of it carrying so far in the wind that it made [F/N] flinch.

Her heel brushing against the edge, Almost falling off she yelped in surprise.

Akaza stepped forward though he stopped once he saw she regained her balance.

"L-Leave me the hell alone, Akaza! This doesn't involve you!!" [F/N] screamed back at him, Her surprise morphing into outrage as she tried to mimic his stature once more. Though it was a caricature of what it once was.

Akaza scoffed, Taking another step towards her.

"Yeah? Well what the fuck is this?! Cause it seems to me that you're about to kill yourself!" He answered back with no hesitation, Making [F/N] take in a sharp breath of the freezing air.

"S-So what if I am, Eh? What if I am.. I-It doesn't involve you so leave me the fuck alone so I can do this!" She screamed, Turning back around towards the drop below and raising her leg once more to hang it over the drop.

Akaza yelled out and in an instant, [F/N] felt a crushing hand around her upper arm, Making her cry out.

He had moved so fast in a single moment, [F/N] had no time to react.

"You idiot! Of course this fucking involves me! Of course it does!" He yelled in her face, Strings of saliva connecting his canines to his molars hit her face. She winced, The glow of his eyes only inches away from hers.

The way she was acting right now, It was so alien to what she was like before. [F/N] was callous, Reckless even. She wasn't in her right mind and Akaza could tell that from the way that her fighting spirit was now present.

It was the first time he had ever felt it, The first spark of her spirit that he had ever felt.

And it was roaring.

It was volatile, It was dangerous. It pulsated with such anger and hatred that it made a chill run down Akaza's spine, He had never felt anything like it before. It was so powerful too, It made his shoulders raise and his nails dig into his palms in preparation of a fight.

Ferocious, It wanted to bite.

[F/N] smiled, It wasn't happy or sad but instead it was malicious. A cruel kind of expression that hissed venom.

"O-Oh yeah. Because if I die, You lose your ticket to number one, Am I right?" [F/N] mused as her smile grew acidic, Pushing her face further to his as she examined his expression turning from her words.

It fell, His face. The angry visage he sported was still there yet it had fallen into some kind of disbelief or confusion. He just.. Blinked, Looking at her standing unfazed. Why he cared, Akaza didn't know.

The only thing that he did know is that she couldn't do what she was about to do, What irreversible act he wouldn't let her commit. Akaza shook his head, Gawking at her.

"That's not what I mean- For fuck's sake can you not see what you're doing to yourself right now?!" His anger picked back up as his words ramped back up into wrath, [F/N] rolled her eyes at his words.

"I know exactly what I'm doing.. S-So how about you stand back and let me go?!" She bit back, Tugging at her upper arm to try and let him to forgive his grip. Akaza only tightened it, Yanking her further back from the edge.

"No, You will come down from this fucking roof and you will speak about whatever the hell is making you do this, Right now!" He yelled, Nose jutting into her face as [F/N] exposed her grinding teeth in rage.

"Why do you care so much?! L-Let me go!" She yelled, Starting to struggle harder against his iron clad grip around her upper arm. Akaza didn't budge however, Tugging her further and further away from the edge.

"No!" Akaza responded, Making [F/N] hiss.

She snarled and in one swift movement she drew her head back and slammed it against Akaza's.

Akaza yelled out in shock as he forehead roughly connected with hers, Taking him by surprise as he stumbled back several steps.

[F/N] felt the throb as the contents within her skull started to rock at her movement, Though she composed herself as Akaza's grip was let go from her arm.

In one swift movement her body jerked around, Her foot pressing down onto the spine of the of the roof and launching her forward towards the edge. There was no more time to hesitate as she started sprinting to the edge.

Her feet thundered against the roof tiles, Sweat falling from her face as she tried to get to the end of the roof.

Her foot hit the border of the spine, The one hanging off the sixty foot drop below. She prepared to launch herself off before she felt the strength of two toned arms wrap around her waist.

"Gh-" [F/N] sputtered as they caged her in, Squeezing her tight as her body was lunged backwards and thrown across the roof.

Her body tossed and turned within the air, Wind rushing against her body as she spun around for only a second before her back hit the rough texture of the tiled roof. Once she did she bounced, Once then twice before skittering to a halt.

Akaza stood a few metres away, Their positions now switched as he stood in her place at the edge while she was splayed out on the other side of the roof.

He opened his mouth, Yelling out his words.

"Don't understand what the hell you're doing?! Are you really this ready to waste yourself on this roof?! Are yo-?"

"-Shut up."

[F/N]'s voice spat out, A raw and primal sound that made Akaza instantly close his mouth. It was her fighting spirit, It was growing by the second. The sense of danger, The overwhelming sense of hatred burning inside her was stark.

He had never seen a spirit so strong and repugnant before.

[F/N] pushed herself up by her elbows, Her form shaking as she got onto her knee's and looked at Akaza with such loathing and ire that it could kill from a single glance.

A wild beast, That was the only thing looking back at him.

"L-Leave, Now. If you're worried about Kokushibo then he won't suspect a thing that you're here, Kaigaku won't tell- He'd already be dead from his master's blade for letting me die." [F/N] said as she got up from the floor, Standing up on shaking legs as she met him eye to eye.

Akaza's brows furrowed, His shoulders raising higher than they already were as he matched her stance.

"No, I don't know why you're trying to do this- But for fuck's sake is this really worth it?! Get the fuck down from this roof, [F/N]!" He yelled back at her. What words he meant to say came out as a threat, What words he wanted to let spill was masked as anger.

[F/N] tilted her head, Almost mocking him.

"W-What? Some 'throwaway shrine maiden' is worth keeping around huh? I'm not getting down, I-I'm choosing to do this, Akaza. So let me end this now.." [F/N] hissed though it almost sounded like pleading, The way her eyes looked at him almost seemed desperate.

Akaza cracked his knuckles, Preparing. He stared at her, Eyebrows lowering as his glare burned into her.

"I won't let you." Akaza finalised.

[F/N] cracked her neck, Rolling her shoulders as her hands turned into fists.

"Fine by me."

As soon as the words left her mouth her legs started to move. Her figure instantly turning around to the other side of the roof and starting to sprint towards it, Feet going as quickly as she could.

Akaza chased after her, His demonic speed was no match for her human stamina as he swiftly tackled her down to the ground.

His body slammed into hers, His shoulder pushing into the dip of her back and making her yelp out in pain. She collapsed to the ground, Akaza on top of her with the sheer force of their impact shaking the building.

[F/N] hissed as she wildly hit at Akaza from behind, Her front pressed against the rooftop and unable to aim her hits. He had a hand holding her down onto the roof, Restraining her movements with a single hand to the back.

Even when she did hit him, It didn't even make him flinch. His demonic endurance was too much to be affected by what felt like a light touch to his skin.

"Give it up, Now!" Akaza spat as he looked down at her, Flailing about and screaming obscenities at him. She tried to struggle or wiggle her way out of his hold, But it was no use and there was nothing she could do.

Not until the shine of sapphiric blue caught her eye.

"No!" [F/N] took no time in grabbing the lotus hairpin that she had tossed aside only minutes ago, Her hand gripping onto the flower and flaunting the pin as she stabbed it without target towards Akaza.

"FUCKING DAMNIT-!" Akaza hollered out in pain as the pin was rammed into his right eye, Piercing into the jelly of the organ as it spurted out hot blood from the innards. [F/N] yanked it out, Which only made it spew out another hot stream of ichor.

He let go the hand on her back in favour of moving it towards the injury of his eye, Taking more time regenerating as it was an organ.

[F/N] slipped out from under him, Arms grasping at whatever she could of the roof as she started to stumble out into a jog.

"S-Stop trying so hard, Akaza! I have nothing left to live for, Let me do this-! Stop trying to save me!" [F/N] said as her legs ran along. How useful it would be to have a nichirin blade right now, How easier this entire process would be.

Though as she looked at the red covering the sapphire flower in her hand, The pearl ribbons pooling in her palm. She realised that the pin was made of scarlet iron ore. The exact same that swords of slayers were made out of.

Kokushibo, What little grace he had given her. He gave her something to use to finalise her life, To write the last chapter in a monotonous book that would never stop for the life of it. So that's why she would personally end it .

Akaza had already regenerated at this point, His right eye already as good as new as he chased after her.

[F/N] knew that if he had tackled her to the ground while she ran, She wouldn't get up again and her plight would end. So she turned around to face the music, Scarlet ore pin in her hand as she displayed it openly.

Akaza slammed a foot down in front of him. [F/N] flicked the pin like a switchblade.

"Last chance, [F/N]. Back down, Now!" Akaza called out but [F/N] didn't answer him, She only pushed a single foot towards him. Launching herself forward with the sharp end of the pin in her hand. Akaza raised his hands in defence.

The pin came down on him, The sharp end slashing down and cutting open his skin.

On it's own it wouldn't mean a single thing but as [F/N] hacked at him over and over again with unforeseen speed, Akaza could tell how the sheer will she had to win their fight.

"Why are you trying to do this?! What the hell are you going to gain from offing yourself?!" Akaza yelled out as he threw out a punch, His fist creating heat in it's movements as it went towards her chest. [F/N] dodged, Her movements flowing like water as she ducked under his fist.

"My redemption! If I can't have it in this life, Then I can have it in the next!" [F/N] yelled out as she flipped the pin in her hand upwards. She rose, Akaza had barely any time to dodge as the pin slashed into his arms once more.

Akaza gawked as they continued to deck out punches and slashes over and over again. [F/N] was tricky, She was fast and unpredictable in her movements due to the desperate ferality pulsating through her mind.

Saliva spat out from her mouth as she screamed, Veins popping in her forehead as she got quicker and quicker.

Akaza kept up however, His movements becoming swifter in tandem with hers. Throwing out left then right as she lowered up and down to avoid his attacks, They weren't to kill nor were they to harm which was the only thing holding him back from overpowering her.

They were to restrain, To hold her back from herself.

"Redemption? The hell do you mean by redemption?! What could you possibly do to redeem yourself by shedding your own goddamn blood?!" Akaza yelled as he threw out another punch.

"Y-You would never understand! It's better for everyone if I just die, Right here, Right now! There is nothing left for someone like me to live for!" [F/N] screamed as she swayed to the side, Avoiding his punch.

"You're not thinking clearly-! You have goddamn mountains to live for-!" Akaza yelled as he dodged another one of [F/N]'s slashes. Akaza didn't put any thought into what he said, Nor did he really understand it.

But it felt natural, Words coming easily onto his tongue.

[F/N] scoffed as she swung the pin once more.

"You don't know shit about me, You don't understand how much I deserve this- Akaza! There is no more reason for me to continue existing, There is no more meaning to my life! Let me go!" [F/N] shrieked as she jumped back and landed a few feet away on the roof.

Akaza lunged back as well. A fist punching into the roof as he landed, Making an eruption of tiles and wood erupt from the crater below. He snapped his head up towards [F/N], Who was sweating and breathing heavily.

As he looked at her. Details from weeks ago suddenly became much more prevalent than they did back then. The way her hand almost slipped from his when she dangled off the side of the infinity castle, The way she asked if there was a god with such uncertainty.

Akaza doesn't know why he cares, In truth he didn't have a personal connection to [F/N]. Not a massive one anyways but he still didn't want to see her harmed, Because she was a woman? Maybe.

"You shouldn't even care- You're a demon, But I suppose you don't like women getting harmed so maybe I should've expected this.." [F/N] commented, Confirming his thoughts as her nose scrunched up in disgust.

Akaza's lip turned into a snarl.

"I'm not letting you kill yourself because giving up on your life isn't a move the Hashira who killed one thousand would do. He's suppose to be strong! You're suppose to be strong so start living up to your name, Goddamnit!" Akaza yelled out at her, Standing up to his full height with every word dripping with truth.

[F/N]'s wrathful expression that burned so bright before, The one that shown her anger on her sleeve with such vigour before just.. Fell.

Her shoulders slumped, Her snarl dropping down into a tight lipped frown as her hands fell slack to her side. [F/N] just stared at him blankly, Her eyes shown no more fire, Burnt out and exhausted as she huffed in and out.

She gazed up towards the dark sky above, Biting her tongue. His words made her feel so small, [F/N] knew that he didn't mean it. [F/N] knew that but that didn't remove the impact that it brought upon her.

That title, The Hashira that slayed a thousand. It still weighed on her shoulders and picked away at her mind, The expectation and proclamation of her worth. How she loathed the way those string of words sounded.

She sighed, The breath coming out turning into cold mist as it floated away in the air.

Inari, I hope you're watching this.

She gripped the sapphire flower tighter and tighter, Her head turning down to look at the gleaming jewel in the little light that was provided to them. It was beautiful, A lotus flower with such beautiful petals. [F/N] raised it, Showing it to Akaza.

"Akaza. You know how heavy that title is on my shoulders, Right?" [F/N] said as she backed up a bit, Shaking the lotus in her hand to emphasise her point. Akaza blinked looking at the hairpin.

"How heavy?" Akaza responded in turn, Not understanding where she was going with this.

[F/N] smiled, Yet the expression she held had no happiness behind it. No joy and light as she shuffled back even more, Her face filled with nothing but apathy as her smile widened even further.

"Heavy enough to make the fall all the more harder." [F/N] said as if it was a punchline to a joke. But as Akaza's attention was finally drawn away from the hairpin his eyes widened, Finally being able to see what she was doing.

His attention was drawn away from her, His eyesight raised to obstruct her lower half. In the time that she had displayed her hairpin she had shuffled far enough to reach the edge.

Akaza had no time to react.

[F/N] smiled, Time seemed to stop for one final time. Everything was silenced as she began to fall backwards.

His eyes widened.

Her body tipped over, Her bare feet no longer connected to the tiles of the roof as the hairpin was let go from her hand, Falling down with her into the drop below.

Her Samue flowed in the wind, So sublime and gracefully as she started to fall. The air around them both got colder, The wind stopping in place as if to become bystander to the event unfolding.

[F/N] mouthed something, Something so small yet Akaza understood every syllable as he watched her mouth.

'Thank you for trying'

Then, She disappeared down below.

Akaza screamed.

In a second his back foot pushed forward, In a split second he had launched himself forward into the air at blinding speeds. His muscles pushed to his limits as he sprinted to the edge in record times and lunged off of it to follow her.

The air picked up again, Whipping against his skin as he watched [F/N] spin around in the air as she fell down towards the ground. Akaza maneuvered himself, Using his own weight to make him fall faster than she did.

[F/N] watched the world around her start to spin, Watched the wind rush around her as the world turned into a dark blur. She tried to kick away the fear building up inside her once more, Shutting her eyes so tight to block it out.

She exhaled, Letting the final breath be expelled from her lungs. Hair dancing in the wind as she fell, She tried to relax as the ground below her grew bigger and bigger. The docks becoming as detailed as she could.

This was it, Only a few more feet to fall. A single se-

THUMP!

Something hard jabbed into her side, A sharp pain erupting within her organs as she sputtered out blood.

[F/N] was launched only a few feet to the side, But it was enough for her to avoid the dock entirely. She recognised it as Akaza's hand, He had hurt her, He had broken his vows as he locked eyes with her mid-fall.

She didn't meet the face of old wood and rickety old fisher docks, Nor did she smell the coppery iron of her blood. None of them were present as she suddenly came face first with glowing aquamarine.

SPLASH!

[F/N] hit the waters, Aqua exploding into the air at impact as the droplets scattered around onto the wooden docks.

Her nerves were met with a burning cold, Suddenly surrounded by the freezing glow of the vast ocean. Oxygen deprived, She was left within the scorching yet somehow comforting sensation of the environment around her.

She was floating, There was no noise or sound apart from the bubbles rushing by her body and tickling against her bare skin. She was left to her thoughts, So dissonant and deprived from her surroundings.

How cruel must Inari be? Whenever she tries to end her suffering, There's always something to get in her way. Why was she just left to burn, Why did she never get any salvation from the deity she worshipped her entire life.

[F/N] stared up at the blurry waves that were sloshing back and forth against one and other, An undying battle to be the one on top. Their power broken against another who met their victim's fate only a moment later.

Seaweed danced and swayed within the ocean that she floated in. Tears starting to mix in with the water as she stared up at the waves in a trance. A puppet made to dance forever, To always be tethered no matter how much they may try to cut the strings.

Her lips parted, Eyes going dull as she was left to float.

A blurry figure made itself clear from the world above the water, Standing on the docks it took no time in diving into the chilling sea as he swam towards her limp body. [F/N] didn't even react when she felt an arm around her waist start to pull her up.

She had failed her second attempt just like she did her first, She didn't succeed. She was a failure as always, Unable to do anything right. Unable to keep a promise or unable to get out of bed in the mornings.

Whatever, The sun was always too bright for her anyways.

It's why she hated her childhood home, The sunlight always present 24/7 to taunt her. The night being a cold comfort in such a horrid life. She would stay in bed forever if she could, Forever under the temporary love of her covers.

As she felt her body being lifted out the water and oxygen finally returning to her lungs, She made no movement whatsoever. Like her limbs had given up moving, Like her muscles had caved in on themselves.

[F/N] smiled tiredly, As if it was funny to her.

How cruel.

☆♡☆

The wind spread across the vast dimension of the shrine, Blowing a brisk breeze against the skin of anyone who was lucky to bear it. But it left a frigid feeling in the bone's of [F/N], Who was currently sat upon the steps leading up towards the shrine.

She was draped and wrapped in an oversized towel Akaza had found in a deep section of the shrine, One he had made her follow him to collect as he didn't want to leave her alone for even a moment.

She was dripping in seawater, Her entire body was drenched in it and her Samue was sopping wet. Her hair dampened and dripping down as her head was dropped to look at her feet.

Huddling within the towel, Her knees were pulled close to her chest as her head was pushed into the dip of them. Hands wrapping around her form and towel draped over her to soak up all the water.

A splash of water exploded a few metres off of the dock, Akaza erupting from the sea and upper body draped over the side of the dock. His hand clutched the sapphire lotus hairpin tightly within his hands as he climbed onto the dock.

[F/N] made no move to react, Keeping her eyes dead-set on the puddle she made upon the steps. Not even daring to look up as she heard the heavy footsteps grow in volume as they marched towards her.

A dark shadow was cast over her in the shape of a toned figure. Akaza stood only a foot or two apart from her as he examined her form, Sapphire flower still clutched tightly in his hand as he stretched it out towards her.

"Your hairpin." Akaza said, Presenting it to her in a now open palm. [F/N] didn't raise her head to even look at it, Water droplets splattering onto the wood of the dock as she nudged her knees closer to her form.

Akaza knitted his brows before lowering down and placing the accessory beside her on the steps. [F/N] didn't move to take it then, Nor did she move to take it now. Akaza sighed, Moving along the dock.

[F/N] felt a weight beside her push down the wooden step she sat on, She didn't need to look to her side to know that Akaza had sat down beside her. Almost too close for comfort as he leaned over and placed his elbows onto his knees.

He didn't speak, What words that could've been said were already spoken but not by mouth. Akaza just gazed out into the far off horizon, Taking time to gather his thoughts before he spoke.

"Why'd you do it." Was all he said, Not looking back at her. It wasn't angry anymore but it wasn't weightless in the slightest. Neither of them spoke for a long while after he had, The sloshing of water was the only thing to hear.

[F/N] breathed out, Tugging the towel over her figure just a little more.

"Told you. Life just isn't worth living for me, It's a struggle just to get out of bed everyday.. I don't have any purpose.. Even if I did I'm a monster and a failure, My death would be my redemption as well as my cure.." She replied as she watched the water from afar with a forlorn gaze.

Akaza took a moment to soak the words into his skin, Listening to the settling of the shrine and feeling the wind brush against his skin. He felt his salmon hair start to wave, The feeling of it so delicate.

"You don't have a purpose?" Akaza prodded as he took a gaze back to her, Looking over her chilled and shaken body from the water. [F/N] shrugged slightly, Looking back at him with lame eyes.

"I like to think everyone has one.." She started, Dropping her head to the side as she started to think over her words. "I know they do.. I use to look at my co-workers and I could feel it, Like a sixth sense you know?"

Akaza turned to fully look at her, Nodding his head for her to continue on.

[F/N] clicked her tongue, Tapping her fingers against the dock.

"But not me, Whatever drive I had has been long gone.. My motivation just use to be survival, To be able to afford a meal or just keep myself alive.. Isn't that just pathetic?" [F/N] smiled sadly as she shook her head and sighed.

Akaza looked at her and felt something resonate inside of him, Something familiar and something he could almost relate to as an image of a boy punching a man appeared in his mind.

He blinked, The vision disappearing. Akaza shook it off as he turned his focus back towards her.

"No, I don't think so. Surviving is a vital part of humanity and just wanting to pay for food isn't pathetic in the slightest." Akaza responded as he saw the tapping of her fingers stop and her vision trail off.

"But that's just it. I was just surviving, I wasn't living.." [F/N] whispered so quietly, Her voice barely carrying within the air. The wind picked up, [F/N]'s hair dancing in the crisp breeze as she took a moment to take it in.

Akaza turned back towards the horizon. He didn't know what to say anymore, Emotions that he should never of felt in the first place had no phrase or word to convey what he wanted to speak.

[F/N] smiled as she felt the warm embrace of tears grace her thawing skin, They travelled down her cheeks and created an unscratchable itch as they reached her chin. They dropped to the floor as she took her entire environment in.

[F/N] turned to look at Akaza, Still smiling softly.

"..Do you want to know why I'm like this? You wanna hear the true reason why I deserve to die?" [F/N] asked, Smiling wider as Akaza turned to her with wide eyes. He stared at her for a moment before nodding.

[F/N] sniffled, Her arm moving out from under the towel and holding her hand out towards him. It was still soaking wet from the water, Droplets dripping down from the tips of her fingers.

"I want you to hold my hand, Then I'll explain everything.. I.. I've never told anyone this before, So I trust that you will keep it a secret.." [F/N] said, Nudging her hand further towards him.

Akaza's eyes narrowed in on her hand before glancing back up at her.

"I won't tell anyone, Not that I can but.. You really trust me to tell me this? Besides, Holding hands? Doesn't that seem a little personal?" Akaza said as his hand raised yet never took hers.

[F/N] sniffled, Rolling her eyes as she shrugged.

"A-Akaza, We are way past personal at this point. I'll be here for a long time so who cares if we do, Might as well. So fuck that rule and you hold my goddamn hand, Okay?" [F/N] demanded as she shoved her hand towards him, Wiping her tears with the other.

Akaza nodded.

He laid his hand in [F/N]'s, Her fingers curling around his as the dead cold of his hands started to be warmed by the comforting body heat of [F/N]'s hand. She took in a deep breath, Looking up towards the sky before exhaling.

"Alright. Here we go.."

Next Chapter

51 notes · View notes