Demon Slayer Imagines

Tsugikuni Yoriichi

Reflection

❀ word count: 1901

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 Long ago, before everything was as it is, time was nothing but a moment of reflection, like staring at one's reflection in the crystalline water. The unspoken words that floated in the air, gentle breezes passing by and bringing whispers of good fortune. Was it truly like this?
The sight of the mountains was something to behold and remember, a natural beauty brought by the Gods, perhaps. One must find their way in life, and like a mountain, we climb and climb, until we reach the top, and only then we can determine whether the journey was worth it or not. Pain, sadness, anger or happiness, warmth and peace.

At the very top of said mountain, the air would feel thinner than down there, the cold was prominent as well, but what is a little bit of cold compared to the great view one has of the rest of the world. It feels like you've reached the very peak of your life, but what's behind you is yet to come. The long journey back to where you first started - the non existence.
What is life, was a question that many had pondered before, yet to no avail. After all, who could answer so firmly what life was all about, if you are yet to live the rest of it. Finding a purpose, finding a path.

Staring into the sun's personification, your tearful eyes stared for longer than one should. The sun was, after all, a sight only to be glanced at for less than a few seconds. An unknown beauty, yet a source of life to us all.
That was what it felt like to be held by Yoriichi's strong arms, the comfort and the warmth his red kimono provided, wrapped around your bloody frame. You felt colder by the second, perhaps the air on top of the mountain was too bothersome, or perhaps the though of death was too frightening that it sent shivers down your spine.

Despite the growing pain in your chest, the piercing broken ribs that ripped your lungs very slowly, you found it easy to breathe close to the long haired male. His eyes showed desperation, in contrast with his solemn expression. To watch his loved ones die countless times, you felt bad for being yet another number on his list of people that left him without him being able to aid you in some way.
The unspoken pain grew in the air around you, the tension, the sadness. Tears began falling from his own eyes, as he closed them calmly and allowed droplets of salty rain to fall on your cold and numb hand - even then, you swore you felt the water run down your skin, like a gentle river passing by silently.

None of you dared to speak anything, even if your minds held many thoughts that you felt like letting out in the air. Perhaps the approaching death made you all too emotional, or the sight of your beloved one's tears made your heart ache more than the shuriken that had pierced through it - the object of the demon who had attacked sooner, a while before Yoriichi's arrival.
It was all too fast, yet it felt like a painful eternity to wait for the upcoming peace. The male wrapped you around his arms even tighter, expressing his sadness through the honest and gentle action.

"Y-Yoriichi-san..." you managed to whisper.

The male shook slightly, his body began trembling from the sobs and hiccups that he was holding for dear life. His heart felt like it had just shattered at the sound of your painful voice, and he managed to rub your neck softly, caressing some of your hair in a comforting manner, leaving his tears to fall down the exposed skin of your collarbone, which made you smile.
Your eyes were just barely open, and all you saw of him now was his wavy hair that you had once loved to nuzzle your face on, when none of this haunted you, and life was still going peacefully.

"Yoriichi-san...please..." you whispered once more. 

"Don't speak." he pleaded kindly, his voice barely above a broken whisper. "You'll only injure yourself further...do not suffer more."