#earlier in the car i briefly thought of sabito being forced to take a vacation after his mental breakdown episode

[nerosdayinanime]

thinking abt sabito lives design again & i started putting him in situations and reminded myself of my hc that he does origami in his off time

my original vampire!sab outfit idea, his white haori's sleeves seem kinda short on him as a 13 yo ghost so actually growing to 21 hed probably need to extend it, so why not recycle his funky pattern shirt for it? yellow-green geometric pattern along all the edges, and for a sabito lives in place of giyuu au why not attach his red haori on the inside

something something sanemi stopping by the water estate for whatever reason, sabito being a good host asks if he wants some tea and starts to leave to make some, "where are you going? thats tea there isnt it?"

"not the kind you'd want. its mushroom tea, the funky kind."

"the hell are you drinking that for!?"

"lets me see ghosts."

"...you're sick in the head."

"not wrong, but thats not even top five of reasons why."

them chilling drinking tea & talking abt nothing and after a bit sabito starts smiling at thin air, theyre still talking but he keeps glancing over at nothing and when theres a lull in their convo he turns to talk to said nothing "why are you being so quiet?" (i never see you talking with anyone....i dont want to interrupt) "but i like talking to you.." (you can keep talking with him, i'll still be here) a little huff before looking down at the drink in his hands

"who are you talking to?"

"my best friend."

-

sabito coming home from a nasty mission and doing his usual wash-up routine & finally sitting down in the main room. then The Horrors hit. (FuckingfailureWasntfastenough) eyes unfocused and unseeing, (BlueeyesLongblackhairSofuckingyoung) world closing in and feeling like its about to explode all the same, (ScreamofdeathSilenceNofuckinghead) thick tears pooling around his forehead pressed to the floor, (WEAKTOOSLOWFUCKINGIDIOTWRONGDECISIONBLOODONYOURHANDSBRAINATYOURFEETBLOODBLOODBLOODBLOOD)

"SABITO-SAN!?"

the lady housekeep he hired finding him unresponsive curled up on the floor face down hugging himself while shaking like a leaf, freaking the fuck out thinking hes dying of shock or something- pulls him to sit upright leaned against the wall, try and fail to see if hes hugging himself bc of a wound bc hes just. fucking holding onto himself so tightly. white knuckled muscles locked in place. sends a crow to the butterfly mansion for an emergency and sprints to get the nearest doctor, they arrive and hes not moved from where she propped him up, doctor checks his eyes and sees they respond to light theyre just not looking at anything, tries a few taps on the face and the housekeep worriedly calling out for him. nothing. doctor apologizes for what theyre about to do before slapping the Absolute shit out of him.

knocks him over and his hand suddenly snaps out to latch onto theirs to a painful degree, eyes focused and full of fury before it shorts out to confusion. he blearily lets go of the doctor and hisses at the stinging pain in his face, "the fuck hap-ppened?"

"you were hugging yourself on the floor- and you wouldnt respond- you were just shaking!"

"what do you remember?"

(BLOODBLOODBLOOD)

he recoils slightly and shakes his head, "g-give me a minute. fuck.."

"take as long as you need"

focusing his Breath as he haphazardly scrubs his eyes dry with the edges of his sleeves, leaning back against the wall. just breathing for a moment.

"I came home. took a quick bath to-" (wash off the blood) "wash. changed clothes. sat down to do- ..something.."

"do you not remember what you sat down to do?"

"not like that- whatever there is to do. Something. anything. i usually do origami.."

doctor talks yadda yadda makes sure he doesnt have immediate brain damage or actively bleeding wounds & leaves with their promise of another doctor on their way

"sabito-san..? what exactly happened..?" he softens a sad look at her

("my mother used to help keep this place up for the man before you." he smiled, "eh? your mother kept the place intact for my mentor. how nice that you're here to help me out now, ne?")

"bad mission, ("oh..") there was a young boy. i fucked up, the demon killed him." he inhaled through his teeth, "i had to tell his family while covered with his brains."

she recoiled, reached out to lay a comforting hand on his shoulder, "im so sorry..."

he let his head loll back against the wall, "its fine"

"its not..."

"its not. but it is what it is, and its over with."

"...kocho-sama should be on her way."

he quietly groaned, "thank you. ...was it that scary?"

"you usually hide it with some sort of smile. i cant imagine how you do that if its bad enough to make you look like youre dying when you cant stuff it away anymore.."

"heh, sorry to scare you like that..."

"dont be. talk to kocho-sama and see if she can help you. i just dont want you to be in so much pain.."

he smiled genuinely at that, "you really help. talking with you and helping with chores makes it easy to smile."

easy to forget that hes alone. easy to forget pretty piercing blue eyes, what they look like wide with fear and never what they look like in death. blood that tints his memories old and new. blood that he coats himself in, blood he refuses to wash away- blood thats all he has left of him.

-

sabito has a little stall at the end of the market in the nearby village, just big enough for himself and a few bundles of paper, out of the way of the busier sections. most people pass seeing how he only has a few paper figures and a bunch of colored paper to sell. a few stop by, intrigued by what he could possibly be doing here.

"whats your favorite animal?"

they answer, he picks out a piece of paper and starts folding, he gives them a little guy

"you never said how much??"

"i dont need money, i just do it 'cuz its fun. want another one?"

people bring their friends to get a little paper creature, talk and laugh, enjoy their new little guys. it makes him smile.

a lady walks up, cant name a creature so he suggests a surprise animal based on her, "sure." he starts folding, eventually she recognizes it "an elephant!?" "yeah," not really looking at her as hes finishing it, "theyre kind animals, 'gentle giants', but theyre still very powerful. predators have to pick off the sick or young because the healthy adults are too strong to be brought down. smart too. i also read that theyre matriarchs- the oldest wisest female usually leads the herd. she shows everyone how to be an elephant, where to find food, how to navigate their world, safest places to travel. she's their guide and teacher." he sets it down closer to her, "you make me think of an elephant."

"oh," she looks at him stunned, "thank you."

he smiles, "careful not to squish it, if you do though i can just make another one for you. have a nice rest of your shopping trip."