MESSAGE. 💖 tanjirou & nezuko 🥺 @litteriae
I WANT TO HOLD YOUR HAND ! ( accepting )
'NOTHING IS GOING TO HARM you... Not while I`m around.'
The mantra, the promise, she swore &. kept locked within herself, within her bones, between her ribs in an expanse that continues to beat, repeated itself in rapid succession. 'Not while I'm around... Not while I'm around...-' Running desperately through the woods without aim or direction squeezed her lungs tight, a scorching feeling that burned like the sun igniting her entire body into flames.
Her brother... Tanjiro... He was in danger. Far away from her reach, she knew he was in danger ; their mother said so! She didn`t need her eyes to see the truth. Instinct forced her to run, with bare soles that touched soil &. felt the world beneath her feet. Her world ... It was beginning to crumble.
So, Nezuko ran. She ran even when her legs grew sore &. bruised without the promise of relief. She ran even when she started to wheeze, air struggling to reach her lungs, as she was forced to regress &. fall on all fours, hunched over as a wild beast as she ran &. dug through the Earth with sharp claws. But still, she ran. Only to stop once she reached a town, remembering where she was, who she was, as she restored her gait to something more human.
'This town ... It`s already destroyed.'
Nezuko was too late, unable to protect Tanjiro from the harm that razed an entire town.
But, he kneels, like a boy whose heart was set aflame. He was kneeling, sword propped up by his hand, impossible to surrender the fight. Even in death. Those that bore uniforms similar to him surrounded him, even the unique haori-clad hashira that spared her life all those years ago, weeping, a chorus of sorrow. A great victory, but also a great loss ; here lies a great soldier, powerful enough to fight a king &. never waver. But still ... He was still a child. &. Most important of all, he was her brother.
Death &. sorrow surrounds them, a stench so putrid it could clog up her lungs &. make her eyes water. A scene like this could make old wounds resurface ; the trauma felt so fresh, she was sure she never fully healed &. allowed her psychic wounds to scar now that her memories were a full picture rather than the blurry snapshots from before. Her family... Her entire world ... She wanted to weep ; she wanted to join the others &. weep &. howl &. shout &. fall down to her knees, wailing &. dry heaving before cursing the entire world for taking away hers. But, the young demon didn`t. No ; Nezuko would spiral if she cried now. &. There`s no telling if she could dig herself out of the pit if she were to fall in a downward spiral now.
Ignoring the strong urge to succumb to a breakdown, ignoring the astonished gasps at her sudden attendance in the aftermath, the questions, the anxious babbling over what has transpired &. what she already knows as truth right before her very eyes, Nezuko splits the crowd that surrounded Tanjiro in two from her sheer presence alone. She ignored it all. Tunnel-visioned, there was only one place she want meant to be. Standing right before Tanjiro, right before her brother, eyes looked down with love, shining with a glossy sheen. 'Tears?' She failed to maintain her composure. Though, that was no fault of her own.
In his company, she allowed herself to crumble, granting internal forgiveness for being weak as she fell to her knees. Though tears fell from her eyes, shining like gems, &. cascaded down her cheeks, swollen from despair, she wore a smile on her face, a smile so bright it could rival the rising sun, looming over the horizon.
"N - Nothing ... Nothing is going to harm you... N - Not while I'm around," she whispered, struggling to get the words out, as she held his hand, his free hand ... the hand that hardly ever touched his sword. His hand was cold to the touch, but the heat emanating from hers was all the warmth she needed for them both. Just holding his hand was enough.