Giyuu's POV.
It's dark. I can feel my body is aching, but I can't see anything. I tried to lift my left hand but I can't. I tried the other hand and tried to grasp what's wrong with my left hand, but instead I feel a soft dense round thing.
'It's a head. Is it Hana?' She strokes the familiar soft hair. "Hana?" I tried to call her. Her head is moving.
"Giyuu? You're awake?" Her soft voice fills my ears.
Deg. My heart skip a beat just because of her voice. I can feel her fingers touch my cheek. She cupped my face.
"How long have I been unconscious?" I touch her hand on my cheek.
"It's been a week. You were poisoned and badly injured. Why did you carry me before, you stupid! That only worsen you injuries, even your eyes were poisoned!" She nagged me.
I squeeze her hand gently. "Because I thought I lost you," I said, remembering the painful memories as my heart also hurting with it, "your body were apart last time, so my mind was going blank and I can't think straight. When I saw you still moving, being alive, I snapped back to my senses. I can't thought about anything else than protecting you at the time."
I feel a weight on my bed and a warm temperature in front of me. Her hand shifted a bit on my cheek, caressing it deeply and a warm lips touched mine. Her tounge entered my mouth roaming the cavern of my mouth before colliding with my tounge. Her pace is following my heart beat. Her chest is against mine, and I can feel how fast her heart beating right now. I put my other hand on her waist, deepening the kiss. She let go after a while. It was a sweet kiss.
"Sorry for made you worried," her forehead touches mine. How much I wished I can see her face right now. I imagined her pink orbs are closed now, with her long eyelashes decorating her eyelid, her little nose letting out warm air that tickles my skin, her rosy tinted cheeks, and her soft pink lips that shutted. If only I can see that face of hers right now.
"...how long do I need to have this bandages on my eyes on?"
She must be chuckling by now because her face is moving slightly, and her breathing change its pace. "Why are you laughing?" I lifted my hand that is on her waist to her lips, stopping her from her chuckle. She stopped for a second and I could feel her breath touches my hand and her heart beats pacing up.
"W-well, I was going to joked that you are missing my face and such, but your finger stopping me midway," she turned her head, releasing my thumb from her lips as she hold my wrist.
I squeeze her hand that is still on my cheek lightly. "But it's true?" I stated. She jumped back from me, letting go her hands from me. "Hana? What's wrong? Did I say something wrong?" I panicked from not having her warm heat on my body anymore, letting the cold air replacing it. I tried to reach her by lifting my hand in front, hoping to find her.
I touch something that felt dense. I tried to brush over it and found her soft hair. I reached further and found her head. I caressed her head and lifting of my other hand to grasp her face, but instead, I found her hands covering her face. "Hana? Have I made a mistake?" I panicked as brushed her hands on her face.
I take her right wrist and my other hand take her left wrist. I pulled them gently and she give up from covering her face. 'If only I could see her face,' I twitched my eyebrows slightly.
There's a brief silent between us until she break it. "N-no, Giyuu, you're not at fault, i-it's just that I am..." she paused for a bit, "I was embarrassed and still am."
I let out a breath that I don't know I have been holding. I was relieved that I am not doing anything wrong to her. It would hurt me more if she was gotten hurt because of me.
A smile creeping to my lips unconsciously. "How much I wished that I can see your face right now," I sighed. I tried to cupped her cheek and brushing it gently. She hold my hand again, but this time, her head is getting lowered.
"I am sorry, if it wasn't because of me, you wouldn't have been in this situation," she said. Her voice sounds apologetic and the air surrounds her change. I feel a cold drops on my hand. "You won't be targeted and you won't in such a bad state."
'Is she crying?' I panicked again. "Hana, are you crying?" She brushed my hand off her hand. She doesn't sniffles nor sobbing. "Hana, please don't blame yourself. I did what I did because I wanted to. It is my choice for staying there and fight for you, even protecting you as much as I could," I said, trying to comfort her. 'Goodness, I am bad at this.'
I tried to reach her hand again and manage to found it. Her hand is moving, like swiping her tears. My heart clenched when I know she's still crying. I released my grip and opened my arms to her. "Hana," I called her, "come here," I said, referring to her to be in my embrace. There's a short silent before she stuttered in question. "I can't erased you tears since I can't see you now, so please come to my embrace and let me comfort you," I explained. 'I can't stand to not being able to comfort her just because I lost my sight at the moment.'
She stayed still in her place before her movement can be felt on the bed. She slowly coming to my embrace and I noticed that she tried to avoid my injuries as much as she could. I enveloped her figures. "Umm, isn't it hurt? Isn't your body aching or something?" Her concerned voice fillling up my ears. I caressed her head.
"You're not worsening any pain. Besides, you shouldn't have worried about that," I kissed her head, "don't worry about my condition. You were hurt to, weren't you? How about you? How's your injuries?" I caressed her hair that I noticed is not braided like usual. She let it loose.
"I woke up earlier than you, so I am fine now. It's only that my leg is still under recovery so I need to walk with cane, other than that I'm fine." I can imagined her smiling right now as she said those words.
"Your leg? Are you okay now? Is it hurt if you stayed in this position?" I am ready to let her go. 'If it's hurting her, then it's bad. I should let go if that's the case.'
"It's alright. My leg is still hanging on the air, untouched. Besides I missed being embraced with you," her tone of voice sounds like she is enjoying herself.
I sighed in relief and continued to caressing her hair and hugging her. Pestering her with kisses on her face. 'Really she is the only one that can make me like this.'
"Hana, what time is it now?"
"It's midnight, why?"
"Shouldn't you be in your room now?"
"Ehe~"
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"I can eat by myself," I said, rejecting her offer.
"No, you're not. You will listened to me right now because I'll babysitting you until your eyes recovered. Now say ah~"
I sighed in defeat and obeyed her words. I hold by embarrassment and eat the meal silently.
"Ara~ I can't quite believed my eyes right now, seeing the always serious Tomioka-san is being fed, it is truly amusing," the voice of the devil cooed in the room.
"Morning, Shinobu. Don't teased him like that, I'm doing this because he can't see his own meal," Hanabi said.
"Hahaha, I see. And why are you even here? Last time I checked, this is not your room," Kochou said with dark tones. I can imagined her dark smile is present right now.
"Geez, I can't be confined in one place all the time, alright? It's been almost a week. I should be able to take a stroll outside," her tone of voice sounds like she is upset. She must be pouting right now.
"You were injured in several places, and your leg was the worst. Do you know you had a fever over 42° Celcius before!? For God's sake! Don't be so careless about yourself!" Kochou groaned.
"Calm down, calm down~ I will be back to my room after Giyuu eat, alright?" She answered with happy tone.
"No. You haven't eat yet, and Tomioka-san is an adult, he can eat by himself. It is just a porridge, there will be no fuss about it," I heard Kochou's stomping feet and she shoved a bowl to me, "here you go, Tomioka-san. Please eat, Aoi-chan will help you drink your medicine after you finished," she said with her usual happy tone, even though that she's pissed right now. I heard Hanabi's voice slowly left the room, and I starting to eat in silent.
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"I don't need a cane now, but I am still refrained by Shinobu to be in a mission, so I will start the day after tomorrow," she informed me.
"If I counted right, it's been three days?" I asked.
She giggled. "No Silly. It's been three days since you awake, it's been twelve days since I was awake. In other words, I supposed to be in a healthy state right now, but Shinobu is being overprotective," by her tone of voice, I can tell that she is pouting right now.
"Don't be like that, she is an exceptional pharmaceuticals, if she said you still need a rest, then you still need a rest," I said.
She gasped. "Giyuu, since when were you taking Shinobu's side?"
I'm confused by her statement. "I've never been taken anyone's sides?" I asked, confusingly.
"No, you usually in the opposite sides from Shinobu. How come you are taking the same side as her, now?" She keep her annoyed tone.
'What?' I am still confused by her statement. "Are you saying this because of my previous statement about her being an exceptional pharmaceuticals?"
She hummed in response.
"Hana, I'm saying that because I worried about you. If what you said were true, then it's only been a week and five da-"
"Exactly! It's been a week and five freaking days! It's almost two weeks! I should be running and doing a flip somewhere," she scoffed. I can only sighed. "Oh, I have to tell you something. Since I'm going back to mission tomorrow, I wanted to visit someone beforehand. So I will be leaving now, I'll be back in the afternoon, 'kay? Good bye~" she rushed off before I could react at all.
'Why is it that I feel like this darkness becomes darker when she left?' I layed back to my bed, 'well, I'm used to the darkness anyway.' I pulled back my sheet and going back to rest my body. 'I missed her,' I thought, 'I missed her voice lightening up this darkness.'
When your voice is the only home I ever had.
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Third Person's POV.
Hanabi arrived in front of a tomb. She kneeled down, claslping both of her palms and praying for her bestfriend. She opened her eyes after she is done. She take a seat on the ground, beside the tomb and closing her eyes, remembering the memories about the woman that laid here.
"Good afternoon, Miruka. It is a good day today, the sky is clear and no sign of storm. The wind is blowing gently, so I'm not sweating because of the heat. You liked this kind of weather aren't you?" Hanabi opened her eyes and lifted her head, staring at the blue sky.
"I hope you met Kenji-san there. Maybe you also meet my mother? Well you won't know how she looks anyway, so don't bother to," she chuckles, "well, how's death? My mother told me that death is not something that you should afraid of, death is kind because death take us to a peaceful place than the living world where all the pain is present." She looked keep staring at the clouds that slowly moving by the wind. She can feel how the nature's moving, the rustling from the leaves that swayed by the wind, birds that are chirping on the tree branches, and the breeze of wind that is swaying her hair. She let loose her hair today, to lazy to braid it.
"But that's where it gets beautiful, because emotions are present in this world, we can feel the pain, the suffering, the sadness, the warm feeling, the joy, the brightness of what we call living," she smiled, "sadly, not everyone can feel those brightness. Some people mostly feel the pain and suffering more than love. How cruel this world is." she closed her eyes as the wind carry her hair lovingly.
"I hope that you happened to feel the brightness of being alive, if not, I hope in your next life, you can feel it along with Kenji-san." She lowered her head, and stared at the tombstone.
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"What's your dream, Hanabi?" Kenji asked her with excitement.
"Me? Well, the extinction of the demon?" She tilted her head, thinking.
"Ehh!? Then you wanted me to cease from this world? How mean!" He cried, causing the girl to giggled.
"Hahaha, well, bad demon only then," she responded.
The male's face brighten up. "Then, do you wanted to hear my dream?"
"Hm? What is it?"
"I hope that the three of us can grow old together, you with that Water Pillar, and me with Miruka!"
"Eh!? Kenji-san, you're going to proposed to Miruka!?" She asked in surprise, covering her mouth slightly.
He jolted and quickly covered her mouth. "Well, how could I, I am a demon after all. She have a bright future if she find the right guy," he smiled sadly, "besides, I'm happy as long as she is happy. I just hope that our friendship will last until the old times," he smiled.
The raven haired girl smiled at his wishes. She prayed as well that this friend of hers can also find happiness.
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She opened her eyes. Trickles of tears escaping from her eyes.
"Hanabi."
'Huh?' She flinched from her name being called. She wiped away her tears and turned left and right, trying to find the voice.
"Hanabi."
'Who?' She stared to the tombstone and stunned by the sight.
"K-Kenji-san...Miruka-san... how?" She stuttered, seeing the light surround her best friends figures.
"Hanabi, thank you."
"But...why..." tears streaming down on her cheeks.
"Thank you, Hanabi, for keeping your promise."
"But I didn't... I didn't fulfill a single promise..." she sobbed, regretting everything that she did for not being able to save them.
"You keep your promised to not leaving us behind. Thank you for being our friend."
They hugged her small figure and she feel warmth enveloping her. She cried there in their embrace, as they slowly disappeared, leaving her alone under the pink sky, just like her eyes.
"I am sorry...Thank you..."
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