"What are you doing?" She asked as I looked up.
"Akari?" I say as everyone looks at her.
She looks to me and then to the Hashira that hurt Nezuko, she had a look of confusion and anger, I've never seen her angry.
"You're up?" Tomioka was surprised.
"Where are her injuries?" Asked the one with pink and green hair.
"I asked a question." She says.
"Akari, it's okay." I assured her.
She pointed to Nezuko. "Then why is she bleeding?"
"She resisted human blood--"
"How is she healed already?" Asked Shinobu. "Not even a scratch... Nothing."
She moved her hair out of her face as the wind blew, she covered her nose from the blood coming off of the Hashira.
She finally drops her hand. "You don't need to worry about Nezuko, you need to be worried about me."
"Akari, no!" I say.
"Why is that?" Asked the master.
"Nezuko is much nicer than I am. I got this...thing." She says.
"What thing?" Asked Shinobu as Akari lifted her sleeve, digging one of her nails into her skin, a line a blood appears, after a minute it completely heals.
I can tell everyone was shocked by this, considering she's the only known half blood.
"Impossible." The pink and green Hashira's says. "You're not burning in the sun!"
"Kamado Tanjiro, this concludes our business with you. You may step back." The master tells me.
"Akari has never hurt a human either, she resist everytime she smells human blood! Please--"
"There's only one way to find out!" Shinazugawa steps off the ledge of the veranda and onto the gravel.
"Wait!" I beg.
"Shut up!" He says cutting his arm again. The blood drips down his arm as she started to breathe heavily. He walks closer to her, taunting her. "You know you can't resist, you covered your nose before."
"I won't." She says firmly.
"Do it!" He says smothered her face with blood and pushed her to the ground.
"Stop it! That's not fair!" I grabbed his arm and he pushed me back as I hear Akari make a weird noise, she coughed some.
"Here we go!" He says lifting his sword, she turned around and he brings down his sword but she grasped the blade with both hands. Her eyes... they're red! But her eyes are soft and for the first time, she has a small smile. This is a first for me.
She forced herself off her knees and pushed against the sword causing her blood to drop profusely. There was a twinge of pain on her face but she still had a smile.
She spits blood out of her mouth and onto the ground. "Gross."
"What!" He says offended.
"You hurt my friends. They are the only ones that have accepted me for who I am. I get that demons disgust you but we are not all the same. I didn't ask for this but I got a second chance to prove myself." She says pushing against him, his feet pushed through the gravel, he had a startled look to him. "I don't need your expectations of what I'm supposed to be, I made the bricks to pave my way."
"What is your diet?" Asked the master.
"Ramen, Rice cakes, you know, the good stuff."
I smiled, it was a relief to see that she's not so different from Nezuko, it was a wonder how I found her or more how she found me.
She looks back at the Hashira, he doesn't let up as she looked deeply into his eyes like she was reading his soul, she grunted as she kicks him in the groin. An "ooo" comes from the Hashira's as he held himself, falling to his knees.
"You're so cool!" I smiled.
She shrugged with a small smile as she held the handle of his sword. "This is nice." She puts it by his side.
"Now, then, everyone is to show both Akari and Nezuko respect. Our business is concluded, Ashaya Akari."
She nods to him and wraps her arms around me, it took me by surprise, she's never been a fan of physical touch. This warm side of her is so powerful, I have her to thank for what happened on that mountain. I wrapped my arms around her as she rested her head on my shoulder, I can feel her sadness. I just couldn't understand why.
"In that case," Shinobu raised her hand. "Allow me to take Kamado to my house."
"Eh!" My faces drops as Akari contorted her face as she held her hands up to stop the bleeding. "All right, then! Take them away, please!"
A kakushi runs up to Nezuko but is nervous about it, I wish people could be more understanding of her.
"Pardon me for cutting in front of you!" Another one says running up to me.
Akari:
They carried Tanjiro and Nezuko away, I blinked as I realize I'm alone with very important people, then another Kakushi nearly runs me over, I moved and he lands head first into the ground.
"Are you okay?" I asked.
He grumbled as he sat up, grabbing me and throwing me over his shoulder. "Wait-"
"Calm down, I'm taking you back to the infirmary." He says walking.
"This is kidnapping." I tried to release myself from his grip.
"Ow! Just-" he says as hit his butt. "We need to bandage-"
"I refuse!"
"Isn't she cute?" Asked Shinobu chuckling.
"She has such a cute face!" The pink and green haired Hashira beams, holding her cheeks.
"She's quite flamboyant." The tall one mutters.
"She was extra cute with Shinazugawa." The one with the snake says as he pulls me away, then I see Tanjiro run past me. I pressed on the guys pressure point and run after him.
"Hold on a second!" He says as they tackle him. "Please let me headbutt that man covered in scars! I gotta-"
I flipped above the second guy grabbing the back of his shirt and forced him into the ground. Sitting on his back to keep him away from Tanjiro.
"I gotta headbutt him as many times as he stabbed Nezuko! Headbutting him isn't a violation of the Corp rules, right?"
The guy bites my leg and I yelped as I turned around and put him a headlock and pulled his leg up, he shouted out.
There's a whistle in the air as I lifted my foot grabbing the rock with my toes. "Who threw that?!"
I sit on top of the boy again as I see Tanjiro on the ground, obviously knocked out from the stones. I blinked as I looked over to the person that threw them, he couldn't be any older than 14.
"You're not allowed to interrupt the master."
"We beg your pardon! We beg your pardon, master!" They both say as the one under me struggles.
"Just get out of our sight." The boy says as they take Tanjiro away, I get pushed off as he stands over me, menacing.
I smiled nervously. "I would like to apologize."
He throws me over his shoulder and I frown, it was fun while it lasted. It felt good to run around for a bit, even if my fingers haven't grown back yet.
"Do you like it here?" I asked out of bordum.
"Why are you talking to me?" He sounds annoyed. "You got me yelled at."
"I said sorry, I haven't had fun like that in a long time." I say and he goes silent.
"I'm sorry." He says opening the door just to be hit with screaming.
"Five times! I gotta take this five times? A day? And I have to keep taking this medicine for three months? If I take this, I can't eat anything, you know! I mean it's really bitter! It's such an ordeal!--"
I let out an exasperated sigh. "Zenitsu."
"Is that your friend?" He asked.
"Yeah, unfortunately, he's better when he's not screaming."
"So that guy is still making a commotion?" Asked a girl with pigtails, where did she come from? Then I see Tanjiro, they brought him here too. He acknowledged me and then looked to Zenitsu. Who's still screaming.
"Zenitsu." Tanjiro says as I'm carried over to the bed.
"Didn't we already explain it to you numerous times?" Asked the girl. "If you don't stop this nonsense now, we'll tie you up! Really now!"
"Zenitsu!" Tanjiro says and he stops. "Are you okay? Did you hurt yourself? So you did come up the mountain after all!"
"T-tanjiro ...Akari." he says teary eyed as he grabs onto the guy holding Tanjiro, rubbing his snot all over him. "Guys, listen to me, will you? I got stung by a stinky spider, and the poison hurt the crazy, okay? And that girls been yelling at me all this time! I hate my life!"
"Hey, get away from me. I got nothing to do with this." The guy says.
"Hm, Zenitsu...did you get smaller?" I asked as he pulled back from the clothing, leaving snot clinging from his nose, ew.
"I almost got turned into a spider. My arms and legs are really short right now."
"Where's Inosuke?" Asked Tanjiro. "Have you seen Murata?"
"I don't know anyone named Murata, but Inosuke is on the other bed."
"You're right. He's been here all this time and I didn't even notice him!"
The guy sits me down on my bed, I keep my hands up and out of the ways as they get bandages ready. I moved over a little to get comfortable and Zenitsu sits up.
"Akari..." He says.
"Hm?" I respond.
"Who is that guy?" He says referring to the one that carried me.
"Oh, it's-"
"You should really stop leading me on. I'm sick in bed and this is how you treat me? If you don't want to be together, just say it so I can move on-"
"I don't want to be together." I say bluntly.
Shock runs over him. "J-just like that? You don't want to fight for what we have?"
"...no..."
"You're seeing Tanjiro, aren't you?"
I looked at Tanjiro, he was wide eyed, My eyes dart back to Zenitsu. I don't know what to say, he's so weird and delusional, when we're we ever together?
"Hey, stop looking at her beautiful face!" He says to the guy holding Tanjiro. He rolls his eyes and drops Tanjiro, I rolled my eyes into the back of my skull.
He sits back up. "Inosuke, I'm so glad you're all right! I'm so glad you're all right! I'm so sorry! I couldn't rescue you!"
"I couldn't help him either. I'm sorry too." I say.
"It's okay." He croaked. "Don't worry about it."
My face turned into a frown, this doesn't sound like him at all.
"Is that you, Inosuke?"
"I heard he lost his voice or something." Zenitsu's snot still stuck to the guys chest. "I don't have all the details. But I heard he, like, got hit in the neck, and when he yelled at the top of his lungs at the end, that finished it off. And it did a number on his throat. He's depressed now, so it's made him gentle, and it really cracks me up!"
"Why are you cackling in a creepy way all of a sudden?" Tanjiro asked.
"This is exactly why I broke up with you." I say and he stops as someone wraps my hands up.
"I'm sorry for being so weak." Inosuke says, my heart breaks for him.
"Hang in there, Inosuke. It's not like you to get depressed!"
"Come on, you did good! You're awesome!"
"I'm just so happy you're alive!" Tanjiro gleamed.
After my hands are wrapped, I turned to Inosuke and got onto his bed.
"Not him too!" Zenitsu shouted.
I closed my eyes, violence is not the answer, I breathe out. "Inosuke, you're not weak. Not in the least, you're so strong."
"Did I take my morning meds?" Zenitsu shouted once more. "Did you see me take them? Somebody? Did you see?"
~
If there was anyone who knew anything about pain it's me, from my mom dying, to my dad, my dog, turning into a creature, gaining friends, almost losing them, controlling temptation, everything is so hard to handle at once. And what about that man, the master, his voice is so calming and genuine it tingles me to my core. The Hashira's, they must think I'm disgusting, even though I find them all very attractive. I'm sure all of them would like to cut my head off no questions. It made me sad, to think that I'm different and will probably never be the same again.
Of course Tanjiro is looking for a cure for Nezuko but is there even one? I don't want to be this way forever and I don't want this for Nezuko either. Is there a world where pain doesn't exist? Where I can be happy or is this life just bullshit?
What if I can't do this anymore?