░『Zephyr』░(KNY OC STORY/ KNY OC X KNY-OLD/DISCONTINUED)

𝙲𝚑𝚊𝚙𝚝𝚎𝚛 𝟺: 𝚂𝚞𝚗𝚕𝚒𝚐𝚑𝚝 𝚝𝚑𝚛𝚘𝚞𝚐𝚑 𝙻𝚒𝚐𝚑𝚝𝚗𝚒𝚗𝚐

Fukurō sucks in a sharp breath, trying her best not to howl in pain. She was currently doing the Rehabilitation Training, as she was determined to heal and recover as quickly as possible. She wanted to find someone to train her in swordsmanship. Since she was already used to walking, she could effectively rustle through the bookshelves, looking for any books or information about the Demon Slayer Corps.

"Ganbatte ne*, Fukurō-chan! You can do it!"

The girls cheered on as Kiyo tugs on Fukurō's arms, Sumi and Naho holding her ankles down against the futon*. The first section of the training was Full-Body stretches. It definitely hurt, since Fukurō's muscles were extremely sore from keeping up with Tsutsuji. 'Will I pass out before I even reach the second part?' Fukurō wonders, biting on her tongue.

* * *

"Good job, Fukurō-chan. Do your muscles feel less stiff now?" Aoi asks, placing her hands on her hips as she looks down at Fukurō. Fukurō flops down on the futon* face first, limbs spread out. Her reply was muffled, and she seemed on the brink of sleeping.

"You're going to have to do this training until you are fully recovered. Every day you will come into this room and continue your training."

Fukurō whips her head around, staring at Aoi with disbelief, as well as shock.

"?!-"

* * *

Fukurō sits on one end of the small table, as did Aoi on the other end. Kanao and the other three look determinedly at the two. Fukurō was once again distracted by the pungent smell of the medicinal tea, but it was extremely hard to focus now that there were multiple cups filled to the brim with the green liquid. She had understood what she was supposed to do; Either block, or pick up and splash.

Aoi smiles, "Alright, Fukurō-chan. If or when you defeat me, you will be able to move on to facing up against Kanao-chan." She says, "Now, be warned, I won't go easy on you!"

Fukurō nods in response, swallowing a lump in her throat, "... alright." She reaches for a cup, before Aoi slaps her own hand on top of her's. Block.

The table shakes a bit from the force, the tea swirling in the cups. It distracted Fukurō, therefore making her vulnerable and giving Aoi an opening. 'AH— Focus, Fukurō!' As she tries to reach for another cup, her face is drenched with the disgusting tea. Splash.

"Never let your guard down, Fukurō-chan!" Aoi says sternly, placing the empty cup back down on the table."Now, We will try as many times as it takes for you to beat me!"

* * *

Fukurō and Aoi sit outside in the garden, wiping their faces from the Reflex Training. Fukurō had lost multiple times she couldn't even count, while Aoi had finally been beaten after a long period of time. A few days, to be more clear.

Aoi dries her face with a towel, looking at Fukurō with a proud smile.

"You're improving, Fukurō-chan. It only took you a few days to beat me, and it's pretty admirable!" She says, nudging Fukurō playfully. "You don't need to train for the rest of the day, as a reward. You have the rest of the day to relax. I'll bring you some Tamagoyaki later."

Fukurō nods. She was sure she could have finished quicker if she hadn't been so distracted by her environment, as well as Aoi's touch. ".. Mhm. Arigatō, Kanzaki-san." She says, giving Aoi a small smile.

Aoi's eyes widen at the sight of her smiling. It had been the first time she had seen Fukurō smile since her arrival to the Butterfly Mansion. 'Was she comfortable with us now? Does she feel more open?' Aoi questions.

"No problem, Fukurō-chan. I'll go get that Tamagoyaki for you."

* * *

Waiting for Aoi, Fukurō climbed onto one of the many trees of the garden. She had simply grown curious to the sudden, gloomy voice of another person approaching the mansion.

"Mikiko-chann..!"The voice grumbles.

The person had long, black hair in bubble braids that curtained behind her face. They wore the same type of uniform that Aoi had worn under her nurse attire, but with a long skirt that reached past their knees. They also wore a navy-coloured haori* with light blue swirls. A long sword poked out from the side of her white belt, and there was a crow had been perched onto the person's shoulder, and it had a red cloth wrapped around one of its legs. The person had been bleeding, and there were many bruises and scratches on their sepia-brown skin, mostly their face. In Fukurō's opinion, she was very pretty. Very pretty indeed.

Fukurō watches from the tree, her interest increased, before waving openly at them."A-Are you alright? Are you looking for someone?" Fukurō asks hesitantly, cupping her hand around her mouth to make her voice more clear.

"Mikiko-cha-" The stranger's bright eyes open, "Eh?- Who are you? Of course I'm not!" From the sound of her normal tone and her appearance, it was clear this person was not in a good mood. Her eyes narrowed, lips pulled back in a grimace. Fukurō jumps down from the tree, walking over to the woman. "I mean..- I can help you, if you're too hurt." She says, reaching her hand out to her. The woman hits her palm on Fukuro's wrist, pushing it away. The movement was as quick as lightning.

"You don't work here, so I don't need your help." The woman hisses, as Fukurō looks at the woman with confusion. Did this person really not understand her pure intentions? Fukurō tries to protest,"But—"

"You can help me by bringing Natsumi Mikio. It's clear you don't have any more experience than she has. She's the tall nurse with blonde hair. I don't need your help, I'm looking for hers." The woman remarked, eyes sending daggers to the child in front of her. Fukurō did not know who Natsumi Mikio was. The only glance she could take from a seperate worker was when she would walk alongside Aoi in the halls.

"I-.. Uh-" Fukurō stammers, debating whether to try her best to aid this woman, or go find Natsumi Mikio.

"HOSHIKO AYAME! Don't tell me you got hurt AGAIN!" A blonde-haired woman yelled from the front doors of the Butterfly Mansion, arms crossed over her chest. She had an orange and black butterfly clip that resembles a monarch butterfly. '.. So this must be Natsumi Mikio.' Fukurō thinks, attention shifted to Mikio. Mikio wore the same nurse attire as Aoi wore around the Butterfly Mansion, and her blonde hair was kept in a bun. She was pretty tall, as the other woman, who Fukurō now learned was named Ayame, had mentioned.

Ayame's demeanour completely changed once she heard Mikio's voice, "You can't get angry at me, Mikiko-chan!" Ayame explained, shuffling over to Mikio as her ink-coloured hair bobbed in the wind. She tugs on Mikio's sleeve, trying to get her point across,"I went on a mission with more Mizunoto, alright? They were inexperienced, so I had to constantly put my life on the line!" She said, "And besides, isn't the entire point of the Butterfly Mansion to aid injured Demon Slayers?"

Fukurō watches the interaction between the two. '.. Oh. They must be close friends. No wonder Hoshiko-san was so grouchy with me. She must not trust me yet.' As she watches Ayame and Mikio walk into the mansion, she had just realized something.

'No wonder she was so beaten up and bloodied. No wonder she wore a similar uniform like Shinazugawa-sama and Kanzaki-san. No wonder she so desperately needed aid. No wonder she had such a unique-looking sword.'

'Hoshiko-sama, as well as Natsumi-sama, were part of the Demon Slayer Corps.'

-----------------------

*Ganbatte ne: "Do your best" in Japanese

*Haori: a traditional Japanese hip- or thigh-length jacket

*Futon: a traditional Japanese style of bedding