Muichiro didn't know whether he preferred the child version of Inori or her twelve-year-old version. While he did like her chubbier cheeks and cute looks, he realized that the child version of Inori did not hug him or hold his hand with the same fuzziness she normally did. He decided that he liked it better when Inori was his age.
Walking through the familiar halls of the Star Estate, Muichiro had his head up in the clouds. Huh? What am I doing here again? He glanced around the dark hallway. Well, whatever.
Muichiro poked his head into Inori's room, finding the girl rolling all around her futon. He stepped silently into the room, moving to sit beside her futon. He moved his hand to grab her shoulder with the intention to stop her from moving so much, jumping back with wide eyes as Inori jolted with a gasp, her mismatched eyes darting all over the room until they landed on him.
"Mu...Mui?" Inori raked her hand through her hair, damp with her own sweat. She palmed the fabric around her chest, taking deep breaths to slow down her racing heart. "What are you doing here?"
"What's wrong with you?" Muichiro reached out to place his palm on her forehead, checking for a fever. "You don't have a fever. Are you okay?"
"I'm fi—" Inori choked back a sob, slapping her hand over her mouth to muffle out her gasps and cries. "I'm sorry...I'm usually fine even after...that...but...but stars, I don't know what's wrong with me now."
Muichiro circled his arms around her, pulling the currently small girl into his chest. He combed his fingers through her hair, repeating the motion over and over again until he felt her relax in his embrace. "Is it another side effect of the deagement?"
"No." Inori chuckled, resting her ear against his chest to hear his heartbeat. She breathed to the rhythm of his heart, easing herself from her panic. "It's just...another nightmare, I guess...of my time with Muzan."
Muichiro blinked, pulling Inori out of his chest but still keeping his arms around her. "I thought they were gone?" He may not remember word by word what Inori told him a while ago, but that didn't mean he forgot just how much pain she had been put through.
"They're getting milder and less frequent, but they're still there." Inori's words were muffled by his clothes, but Muichiro heard her loud and clear. "Sorry about that, but, um, what are you doing here?"
"Making sure you were asleep." Muichiro lifted her up, making his way outside. "Anyways, let's go see the stars."
"I'll end up sleeping on the grass again."
"Then, I'll carry you back inside again."
·̩̩̥͙＊*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚☆.｡.☆.｡.:*☆ ˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚＊·̩̩̥͙
"Ah, Mui! It's burning!" Inori hastily climbed onto a stool, nearly falling in the process because her legs were shorter than her mind remembered them to be. Taking the pan out of his hands. she was quick to get rid of the burnt crisp of something unknown, washing the pan along with the crisp. "What were you cooking? Stars, what a waste."
Muichiro blinked dumbly as he realized he had been spacing out while attempting to cook breakfast. "Sorry."
"It's fine." Inori waved the apology off. "How about heading out to eat? You don't have a mission yet, right?"
Muichiro nodded, reaching out to carry Inori. The Star Pillar puffed her cheeks, but didn't complain, simply wrapping her tiny arms around his neck. "When are you getting back to normal? You can't hold a sword like this, right?"
"It's only been a few days, so maybe in two or three weeks?" Inori slumped herself in his hold, burying her face into his shoulder with a childish groan. "This sucks. This absolutely sucks. I can't even hold a training sword with this arm strength."
"At least it's not permanent." Muichiro awkwardly patted her back, unintentionally lulling her to sleep.
·̩̩̥͙＊*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚☆.｡.☆.｡.:*☆ ˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚＊·̩̩̥͙
Inori tugged on Muichiro's sleeve, pointing her finger at one of the many buildings along the streets. "Is it just me or is there a weird presence in that building?"
"A demon?"
"Probably. The senses of children are stronger, after all." Inori placed her cheek on Muichiro's shoulder as he carried her towards the building. "It won't hurt to check, right? It's day out right now, but there might be a demon in the basement or something."
"Are you staying outside?" Muichiro held Inori at arm's length. "You can't fight demons like this, right?"
"You don't have to worry about me." Inori opened her haori, revealing a dozen kunai strapped inside of it. "They're laced with poison, so unless it's a demon moon, I'll be fine."
"You carry a lot of weapons," Muichiro pointed out. He was about to enter the shop when an elderly man stopped him.
"Dear customers, are you or your sister perhaps interested in having your future read?"
"Future?" Muichiro and Inori stared at each other, visibly confused. Inori tilted her head upwards, reading the sign hung above. "Miwamaho's Fortune Telling? What do you think, Mui? Do you want to check it?"
"I don't mind."
"You have quite a mature sister there, young man," the elderly man commented, leading the two pillars inside, and opening another door that led to the hallway. "My daughter's an expert at fortune telling, you can believe in her skills."
"There aren't any windows inside, no sunlight can reach here. What do you think?" Inori whispered under the pretext of hugging Muichiro. "Stars, I hate this body. I'm having goosebumps all over."
Muichiro ran his hand up and down her back, cradling her close to his chest. He held Inori with one hand, ghosting his other hand over the handle of his sword as he followed the man down the stairs. The man stopped in front of a door, one hand holding the handle while the other was stretched out in their direction.
"Now, please, this way."
Inori yelped as she was suddenly yanked out of Muichiro's hold, calling out to him as the Mist Pillar was shoved inside another room. She thrashed against the man's hold, but her physically four-year-old body couldn't do much.
"The boy can be food for my daughter, but you"—Inori winced as her arms were forcibly pinned behind her back—"silver-rainbow hair and mismatched eyes, you will be taken to him."
"You're a human." Inori cursed the fact that she didn't have her normal boots with her. "Why the hell are you siding with the demon?"
The man didn't answer her, not that Inori was expecting one. She tried to kick her legs backward, but they were too short to reach the man. Her mind was plagued with worry. She believed Muichiro would be fine, but it still worried her to be separated from him in the middle of a demon's den.
Mui, please be safe.
·̩̩̥͙＊*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚☆.｡.☆.｡.:*☆ ˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚＊·̩̩̥͙
Muichiro glared at his reflection in the crystal ball. His reflection laughed back at him, mocking and eerie. He didn't waste time slicing the glass ball into pieces.
"Dear customer, please don't cause destruction."
"Where is Inori?" Muichiro pointed his sword at the talking book, feeling disgusted by the moving lips plastered on the pages.
"I sense love." A gemstone floated towards him. "Indeed, you love the girl that man wants. How pitiful. How pitiful indeed. I need not read your future to know that you two will not have a happy ending."
"Where is Inori?" Muichiro sliced the book and gemstone in half, feeling annoyed as more and more objects began to circle him, laughing and dancing mockingly in the air.
"Dear customer, let me read your pitiful future." One of the mirrors shattered, revealing a hallway with one door at the far corner. "The fate of your beloved depends on the result of your reading."
Muichiro didn't even bother opening the door, opting to slice it open instead. His irritation spiked even more at the sight of a doll waiting for him. He had half the mind to just slice the doll, but its words stopped him.
"Dear customer, please sit. You wouldn't want Father to hurt your beloved, would you?"
The doll began shuffling and spreading a deck of cards, ignoring the glare Muichiro gave it. "Now, dear customer, please calm your heart and choose three cards. The fate of your beloved is in your hands."
Muichiro hovered his hand over the cards, mentally debating with himself. Do I really have to do this? I can just cut the doll, find the demon, and save Inori. I don't need to play this stupid game. Inori isn't that weak either, she can take care of herself. His fingers twitched as he hovered his hand over the cards. But Inori is physically four right now. What should I do?
"The Wheel of Fortune, The Star, and Death." The cards he chose began to float, circling around the doll as it opened its mechanical eye. "Oh, my. How amazing. 'The Wheel of Fortune' is a card that symbolizes changes. 'The Star' symbolizes hope. 'Death' symbolizes endings. For three major arcana cards to be chosen, how fortunate for you."
"I don't care about that. Where is Inori?" Muichiro didn't like how one of the cards had the literal word 'death' carved into it. He didn't care about the cards or the readings, he just wanted to make sure Inori was safe.
The doll ignored his question. "Change. Hope. Endings. Yes...yes, I have read your future." The cards were now circling him. "In the future, an inevitable major change shall happen in your life. The change will bring hope but beware of the ending for a hope-filled change will not always result in a happy ending. Before the end comes, I suggest you live a happy life with your beloved—"
Muichiro had enough, and he sliced the doll in half. "I don't need your stupid scams to tell me to be happy."
I need to hurry and find Inori.
·̩̩̥͙＊*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚☆.｡.☆.｡.:*☆ ˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚＊·̩̩̥͙
Inori never knew just how strong and painful a child's bite could be until she was the one biting. The second she felt the hold on her arms loosen, Inori didn't hesitate to backflip and dig her foot into the man's face.
She slammed her elbow into the man's neck, knocking him out. "Stars, this body is weak." Inori shook her numb arm, glad the man was old enough that one hit was all it took. Shaking her head, she rushed towards the door Muichiro was shoved into.
"Muichiro—agh!" Inori threw her kunai on instinct as dozens of crystal balls came flying toward her. Due to her terrible aim, the kunai obviously missed the massive crystal balls and hit the bookshelf instead, triggering an army of angry books flapping toward her.
"I hate myself sometimes."
Star Breathing: Twelfth Constellation: Flow of the Fish
Inori shattered and ripped the crystal balls and books coming at her with her kunai, weaving through the chaotic attack. The objects broke with just the slightest graze of her kunai, informing her that they were made from blood demon art.
She cursed the fact that she was getting tired just after moving around that much, and there were still many books and crystal balls flying around. Glancing around the room, she searched for some clues as to where Muichiro could be.
One of the mirrors was shattered, but there was nothing beyond that. "Should I break the other mirrors?" Using one of the flying books as a footing, Inori kicked the mirror with all her might, only to shriek out in pain as numbness spread all over herself. Tingles rushed from her toes to her hips, and Inori crumpled to the floor.
A crystal ball slammed into her head, throwing her body into the wall. Gritting her teeth as blood trickled onto her lashes, Inori swung her kunai. "Stupid weak body." She hissed as she was forced on the defense, swinging her kunai with her back pressed against the wall.
·̩̩̥͙＊*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚☆.｡.☆.｡.:*☆ ˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚＊·̩̩̥͙
Muichiro ran through the halls, slicing up mirrors and random projectiles along the way. He didn't care about the random puppets that kept appearing left and right, easily decapitating them before they could even come close to him. His mind was busy trying to sense the demon. He needed to kill it and ensure Inori's safety.
"Dear customer, won't you accept another reading?" Another doll, made from straw this time, floated in front of him. The wide smile stitched onto its face creeped him out, but his face remained impassive. "We can check your tea leaves this time."
"Shut up." Muichiro sliced the doll in half. He didn't even bother asking the doll again, simply rushing towards the place where he felt most disgusted. Demons really did have a disgusting presence.
It didn't take him long to locate the demon, hidden in the basement floor. The female demon had her eyes closed, but her third eye resting on her forehead was wide open, glowing menacingly in the dark room.
"Dear customer, you have come." The demon clicked her tongue. "And here I thought it would be easy to take that girl to him. For my dear father to be defeated by a weakened girl, it's unbelievable."
"Where is Inori?"
"You are...quite in love with her." The demon hummed, dozens of tarot cards floating behind her. "Yes. Even my cards agree. The cards you picked...it's very curious indeed. You—"
Mist Breathing: First Form: Low Clouds, Distant Haze
His attack was met with a wall of cards, books, and crystal balls, yet his blade cut through them as if they were sand. Muichiro clicked his tongue as the demon fled to the other corner of the room, blood dripping down the side of her neck.
"You shouldn't cut me when I'm in the middle of reading your fortune. It will bring you bad luck." The demon hissed, twisting her fingers to summon more tarot cards. "Anyways, where was I? Oh, right. The very curious draw you pulled. Indeed, when was the last time I witnessed a draw like that? How curious indeed."
Mist Breathing: Fourth Form: Shifting Flow Slash
Muichiro gritted his teeth as his attack was met with yet another wall of cards. The cards dispersed, revealing the demon. More cards floated around them, and the demon giggled.
"I don't know whether I should pity you or not." The demon swirled her finger around Muichiro, grinning until her fangs were bared. "An inevitable change shall happen in the future. A change that will bring hope but will probably not end in hope. How pitiful...how pitiful indeed."
Mist Breathing: Second Form: Eight-Layered Mist
"Truthfully, demon slayer, I can see that I can't win against you." The demon cackled even as blood dripped from her regenerating wounds. "I have no respect for that man, just fear. I believe it is the fate of all living creatures, demons or not, to one day die. So, I couldn't care less if I were to be killed by your blade or his hands. I do, however, want to finish this reading. Let me do so and I promise no harm will be brought upon your beloved."
"I don't care about your stupid fortune-telling."
"It's fine if you don't, but you do care about the girl he wants, right?" Muichiro froze. "Your beloved is currently trapped inside this house, my nest, and in such a weakened state. Are you willing to risk her safety?" The demon grinned, knowing she had won.
"Now, as I have said before, an inevitable change will happen in your future so you should cherish your beloved and be ha—"
"You seem to be mistaken about something." Muichiro didn't lower his sword, glaring at the demon. "Inori isn't that weak, and I don't need to listen to a demon's dumb words to know what to do."
Mist Breathing: Fourth Form: Shifting Flow Slash
"Well, that was easy." Muichiro swung his sword until the blood splattered off it, ignoring the demon's rants about her reading. "I should hurry up and find Inori—huh?" He crouched to pick up the three tarot cards he drew, finding many other cards scattered all over the floor. "Why aren't these disintegrating?"
·̩̩̥͙＊*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚☆.｡.☆.｡.:*☆ ˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚＊·̩̩̥͙
Inori flinched back as the man she had knocked out suddenly broke into the room. He lunged at her while a floating book charged at her from behind. Gritting her teeth, Inori rolled away, letting the book hit the man. Panting, she pushed herself to her feet, gripping her two kunai until her knuckles turned white.
But the floating objects suddenly stilled, dropping onto the floor like a puppet having its strings cut. Inori breathed out a sigh of relief, wiping the blood on her forehead with the back of her hand. She couldn't believe she got injured by an attack that was supposed to mean nothing.
The old man suddenly wailed, and Inori raised her kunai, ready to knock him back out. But the man simply looked around in a daze, blinking his eyes as if he was trying to grasp where he was.
"Daughter...my daughter...where—"
"She's dead," Inori answered, causing the man to turn his head in her direction. "Muichiro already killed the demon. He will be here soon, so let me finish my job." She pointed the kunai at him. "I may look like this, but I am still a pillar. You won't catch me off guard again."
"What...do you want?"
"That should be what I'm asking you." Despite her heavy breathing and trembling legs, Inori kept her grip on the kunai steady. "You aided a demon. You, a human, tried to help a demon eat someone. There are limits to mercy and sympathy, so tell me your reasons before I take drastic measures."
"Please forgive me." The man prostrated in front of her. "But my daughter didn't become a demon out of her own will. A man turned her into a demon because I asked him to. She was sick...there was no cure...I had no choice. Please forgive me. Please don't kill my daughter."
"So, you've been feeding your demon daughter humans all this time?"
"She needs it, so—"
"Don't give me that crap!" Inori couldn't stop herself from raising her voice. "Dozens...hundreds...just how many people died to feed your daughter? You're just as much of a murderer as she is!"
Again, I wonder just how could you think a life like this has value. How could you ever pity them? Inori gritted her teeth, her hold on the kunai beginning to waver. Why is it that when I think I finally understand something, everything just slaps me with the fact that I don't understand anything?
"Do you think your apology will bring back the lives that were killed?!" Inori was yelling at this point. Her childish voice didn't give off as much impression as she would've liked, but she didn't care about that. "As long as demon slayers exist, all demons are bound to die by our blades!"
It didn't matter who, what, or why the demon came to be. It should matter, but Inori didn't have the privilege to think it mattered. If she thought it mattered, she was scared she would end up sparing a demon. And if she spared a demon, she feared she would end up being the reason behind someone's misery.
"Even if your daughter escaped death from disease, she was fated to die by our blades the second she tasted human flesh!" Because she was a demon and Inori was a demon slayer. Two creatures of the same intellect couldn't exist as long as the food chain wasn't balanced. "If that were the case, wouldn't it be better for her to die as a human?"
"I...I have no words but please...please spare her."
"It's already too late." Inori shook her head, hearing the approaching footsteps. "Muichiro would never let a demon live as long as he could kill it, and he's strong enough to kill even the lower moons. Your daughter wasn't spared."
"Then, please kill me too!"
The door was sliced into clean pieces, and Inori saw the way Muichiro widened his eyes upon seeing her. "Inori!" He rushed towards her, scooping her up in his arms. His thumb brushed against the bleeding wound on her temple, and Inori could only offer him a simper when anger flashed in his eyes.
"I'm fine," she assured, placing her hand on top of his, which was still assessing her wound. "It's a shallow wound." Inori would rather no one know that the Star Pillar got her head bashed by a flying crystal ball. "More importantly." She nodded in the direction of the prostrating man.
Turning his head, he glared down at the prostrating man. Holding Inori against his chest with one hand, the other already had his sword drawn, ready to cut. "Is he a demon too?"
"He's a human." Inori shook her head. "If the demon's dead, then we should leave."
"Please wait!" The man grabbed onto Muichiro's leg, tears streaming down his eyes. "Please. I'm just as guilty as my daughter. If that were the case, then kill me too! Let me meet my daughter again. Please."
"We're demon slayers. We slay demons," Inori said as Muichiro yanked his leg out of the man's hold. "You are neither a demon nor a member. We won't judge the sins done by humans. That is not our job."
Inori stared at the man in pity. Because despite everything, the man was willing to go so far because he loved his daughter. "Please endure the pain. There's no other choice but to endure it and live on." She wondered if she even had the right to say that. Then again, things were easier said than done. But even so, she still managed to look in the mirror and plan the smile she would wear for the day.
The sound of a slamming door echoed through the silent house, signaling the departure of the two demon slayers. The old man crawled weakly into the demolished room underground, seeing shards of broken mirrors and crystal balls scattered all over the floor. He picked one of the larger shards, holding it just a finger's width away from his throat.
If they won't end me, I'll end myself.
But before he could dive the glass shard into his throat, a card breezed in front of him, falling slowly as if trying to make him watch. Gingerly, he placed the glass down and picked the card up, flipping it to see which tarot card decided to seal his fate.
"Father, the nine of wands is the card of perseverance," the sweet voice of his daughter—she was human; she was still human—whispered into his ear. "When upright, it's telling you to not give up. When reversed, it's telling you to stop holding onto what's not good for you. If you ever pull this upright card, I hope you will be like this weak-looking and injured man on the card. He may be someone that needs a wand to support him, but that's the true symbolization of strength and perseverance."
The man sobbed, cradling the card close to his chest. The bloodstained glass shard lay motionless on the floor.
·̩̩̥͙＊*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚☆.｡.☆.｡.:*☆ ˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚＊·̩̩̥͙
"Mui, what's that?" Inori pointed her finger at the three cards peeking out of his pockets. "Tarot cards? I didn't know you believed in them."
"Huh? Why are they here?" He didn't remember picking them up. "Weird. They don't crumble even under the sun. It's probably not a blood demon art, then." Muichiro took the cards out, narrowing his eyes at them before tossing them into the nearest trash can. "That demon read my fortune or whatever, and those cards were the ones I pulled. The reading was um, what was it again? Something about change? Well, whatever."
"The Stars, The Wheel of Fortune, and Death. What a weird combination." Inori peeked before Muichiro could walk away. "Well, it's not like I believe in them or anything, so I guess it doesn't matter. Anyways, is it really okay to leave that man alone?"
"It should be fine, right?" Muichiro shrugged, still angry over the fact that a human aided a demon, and that ended up with Inori getting injured. "Our job is only to save lives, not take care of everybody who is grieving. We don't have time for that."
"Hm." Humming, Inori stared at the sign of the fortune-telling shop. "I suppose you're right."
·̩̩̥͙＊*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚☆.｡.☆.｡.:*☆ ˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚＊·̩̩̥͙