Strength Reborn

A Frosted Apology

Tanjiro's POV

I had been trying to talk to Icy Giyu for a while now, hoping to reach him in a way that felt... human. Even though he was a spirit-this strange, childlike being made of frost-I could sense something deeper inside him. He wasn't just a monster taking over Giyu's body. He was scared. Maybe even more scared than we were.

Today, though, something was different. As I spoke to him through the glass, trying to reassure him that we didn't want to hurt him, Icy Giyu's face twisted into something I hadn't seen before. His frosty eyes shimmered with tears.

"Nee-sama..." His voice was small, broken, the two-tone sound wavering as he struggled to form the words. "Sorry... I hurting... hashi..." He sniffled, pressing his hands against the glass, tears freezing into tiny crystals on his cheeks. "Hurting Nee-sama's... hashi..."

Hashira. He was trying to say Hashira, but he couldn't quite get it right. My heart ached as I realized what he meant-he knew he was hurting us. He didn't want to, but the curse was making him dangerous, and he couldn't control it.

"Tengen," I heard Shinobu say from behind me, her voice laced with uncertainty. "What are you doing?"

I turned just in time to see Tengen step forward, his usual confidence tempered with a rare gentleness. He glanced at Icy Giyu, then back at Shinobu. "Open the door."

Shinobu hesitated, her brows furrowed with concern. "You can't be serious. It's too dangerous."

Tengen gave her a look, one that said he had already made up his mind. "He's a child trapped in there. He's not going to hurt us. Open the door."

Shinobu's POV

Reluctantly, I stepped forward and unlocked the door to the glass room. The air immediately felt heavier, colder, as the frost and snow inside seemed to cling to the very atmosphere around us. I wasn't sure what would happen if we let him out, but I trusted Tengen's judgment. He had a way of seeing through situations others couldn't.

The door creaked open, and for a moment, nothing happened. Icy Giyu remained curled up in his frosty corner, peeking out like a child too afraid to leave his safe space. He sniffed the air, his frosted claws twitching as he considered whether it was safe to come out.

"Come here," Tengen said softly, his voice calm and steady. He crouched down near the door, opening his arms like he was calling to a frightened animal. "It's okay. We're not going to hurt you."

Tengen's POV

I knew the others were on edge, but something about Icy Giyu reminded me of the way my younger siblings used to act when they were scared-guarded, but not aggressive. He didn't want to hurt anyone; he just didn't know how to control the frost inside him. So, I figured I'd try something different.

"Come on," I said, keeping my tone as casual and friendly as possible. "You're okay."

Icy Giyu sniffed again, his frosty eyes darting around, before finally poking his head out from the glass room. He moved slowly, cautiously, crawling out on all fours like a wild animal venturing into unfamiliar territory. The cold around him was intense, making the air sharp, but I stayed where I was, holding out my arms.

To my surprise, he crawled right into my lap. His body was cold-freezing, actually-but it wasn't unbearable. For a few moments, he stayed there, curled up in my lap like a scared child seeking comfort. His frosty breath puffed against my chest, and I could feel the ice creeping along my clothes, but it didn't bother me.

"You're alright," I whispered, rubbing his back gently.

He didn't stay long, though. After just a minute or two, he bolted back into the room, scrambling away like he was afraid he'd overstepped some boundary. The frost clung to him, swirling around his small frame as he retreated.

But even with the door open, the cold stayed in the room. The frost and snow didn't spread. It was like Icy Giyu was keeping it contained, holding it back for our sake.

Mitsuri's POV

It was... strange. The door was wide open, but the cold didn't reach us. The frost, the snow, the biting chill-it all stayed in the room, swirling around Icy Giyu as he crawled back to his corner.

"He... he kept it in," I whispered, stepping a little closer to the door. The air was cold near the threshold, but the moment I stepped back, it warmed up again. He was controlling it. Somehow, he was keeping the cold from escaping the room, even though the door was open.

Tanjiro knelt beside Tengen, his face full of worry. "He doesn't want to hurt us," Tanjiro said softly. "He's... he's just scared."

"Then we need to help him," Tengen said, standing up and dusting off the frost that had settled on his clothes. "He's trying to protect us, even if he doesn't know how."

Tanjiro's POV

I could see it in Icy Giyu's eyes-he was fighting. Not just against the curse, but against himself. He didn't want to hurt us, and the fact that he was able to keep the frost contained, even with the door open, proved that. There was still a part of him that was aware of what was happening, a part that was struggling to stay in control.

"Giyu," I called gently, taking a step closer to the door. "We know you're trying. You don't have to do this alone."

Icy Giyu looked at me, his eyes still shimmering with frozen tears. He sniffled, curling his knees to his chest as he sat in his corner. "Nee-sama..." he whispered again, his voice barely audible. "Sorry..."

It broke my heart to hear him say that, to see him like this. He was trying so hard, and yet the curse was making everything worse. But I wasn't going to give up on him. None of us were.

"We're going to help you," I promised. "We'll figure this out."

Shinobu's POV

The scene before me was unlike anything I could have imagined. Icy Giyu had come out, accepted comfort, and then retreated, all while keeping the frost and snow inside the room. It was a level of control I hadn't expected from him.

But more than that, it was clear that he didn't want to be a threat. He knew he was hurting us, and the guilt was eating away at him.

Tengen's bold move had given us a glimpse into the fragile spirit behind the frost. And now, more than ever, we needed to find a way to break this curse.

"Let's start with the books," I said, turning back to Obanai and the pile of texts he had brought. "There has to be something in there that can help us."

Because if we didn't find a solution soon, Icy Giyu wouldn't be the only one fighting to keep the cold at bay. We'd all be at risk of freezing over.

And Giyu... he might be lost forever.