After The Rain

Into the Night

"Then make it quick." She said, dropping the hamper. Aoi tottered behind her, picking up the pieces of clothing that dropped to the grass in Shinobu's spiel of anger. She folded them to be placed somewhere else.

"I..." He opened his mouth and closed it again, looking to the side. Once again, he was at a loss for words: not like it was anything new anyways. Usually, all his conversations were with Tanjirou, who would easily carry the conversation by himself. And other than that sit-down performed by the boy in question, he had never really had a serious, one-to-one conversation about something as important as this. "It's something really important."

"You know," She said, giving him a close-eyed smile. A deep aura of silent ire was floating around her, so much so that even the butterflies seemed to be avoiding her now. But Giyuu would not give up. Not for something like this. "You drag things out a lot, like some kind of big dumb... Child," She entered the mansion now, removing her slippers. Giyuu did the same. "The kind that needs their hand held for every step of the way."

He blinked. "Don't you like children?"

Shinobu stopped. She glared at him, and Giyuu could see that her teeth were gritted. Her hand was raised like she was about to slap him, but it was lowered slowly. "That's beside the point." She spun on her heel and began to march forward, so fast that Giyuu had to almost jog to keep up. Aoi followed the two of them like a confused puppy. "Did you not hear anything that I just said? This is why nobody likes you."

He gave a deadpan glance to the back of her head. Her purple butterfly ornament bounced up and down with her every step. He realised that she was so... Small. And yet within that tiny frame was packed the strength and conviction of a Kochou woman, someone who was proud and powerful and had felled many an unsuspecting demon. Her katana jangled by her side, the thin nichirin metal hidden within her light blue scabbard. Shinobu was strong: someone with the power and confidence that a pillar should possess. Her character was unique, in the way she hid her anger beneath a veil of thin smiles. After everything she had been through, she still managed to be happy: for the girls in the estate, and for the slayers that looked up to her.

God knows that Giyuu was unable to do the same. He had locked away his emotions under lock and key after Sabito's and his sister's death, isolating himself from the others until Tanjirou had cut down his walls and brought him back into the light. Now that he was standing with her, recognising them both as equals, he suddenly realised how different they really were.

She walked into one of the rooms, sliding the shoji open with a stone grip. Shinobu walked to one of the cupboards, beginning to stuff socks and clothing into an open, lacquered pine drawer. The room had a faint aroma of lemongrass.

"So?"

He stood still, broken out of his reverie. "So... What?"

She gave a sharp sigh, pinching her forehead. "What did you want to tell me?"

The pillar waved at Aoi, who nodded and slipped out of the room, closing the door behind her. She turned to Giyuu with an expectant look. "It's important, isn't it?" She said, lips pressed into a thin line. "You're deflecting it, like when you were forced to talk."

Of course she would be able to tell. They knew each other well enough, at least for Shinobu to be able to tell when he was serious, or when he was confused. She could read him like an open book.

"...It's about our last conversation." He said, finally looking her in the eyes. "I wanted to apologise."

Shinobu averted her gaze. She seemed to think for a while, hand flitting to her chin. "Ah."

They stood in relative quiet for a good while as she soundlessly packed the clothes in place. The window was open, a cool breeze billowing through. It swept up her purple-edged hair in its grasp, making it frame her face as though she were ethereal. Giyuu wondered: if he touched her, would she disappear?