Mist Hashira Seina Yūrei 幽霊 清名

Seina's world had come crashing down, and it seemed to take forever as her legs went mechanically down from the mist-shrouded mountain. The silence of the forest was resounded by only the soft pat of their footsteps. The man who saved her walked before her, leading her down paths twisting between trees heavy with mist. Her memories were hazy, her thoughts were foggy-nothing was sharp, nothing was clear, and neither was the future. Thick fog used to feel like home now clung to her as some kind of curse.

The silence between them lengthened, extended and kept on, but Seina didn't dare break it. She was too terrified of what might spill out if she tried to utter a word. Her throat felt raw, as if all her words had been incinerated in the fire of her grief. She didn't even know in which direction these people were headed, or what lay in store for her. All she knew was that she had no home to go back to.

The man-who'd introduced himself only as Kiyoshi-never slowed his pace. He was tall, his body lean but strong, the kind of fluid motion in his movements that came with years and years of training. His dark uniform marked him as a Demon Slayer, though Seina hadn't known much about them before that night. Her village was deep in the mountains, shut off from civilization to the point where they lived in utter ignorance of the greater world. She could ill afford that now.

It felt like she had walked hours before Kiyoshi finally stopped in front of a small clearing. The sun was low in the sky, little light shining as heavy mists choked it out. Finally, he turned to her his expression softening for the first time since she met him.

"We will sleep here tonight," he said to him, composed. "Just up ahead there is a small cave in which we can find shelter."

Seina nodded, but the rest of her went numb. She followed him into the cave-a small shallow hollow in the side of a hill-where the mist seemed less suffocating. Kiyoshi set down his pack and began gathering dry twigs for a fire, his movements practised and efficient. Seina watched in silence, unsure of what to do or say.

Kiyoshi sat down opposite her, the flames finally forcing their way into life and casting a golden light over the cave. The only sound, for a time, was the quiet crackling of the fire. Seina just stared at the fire, pale lavender eyes glowing orange from the reflections there. The cold comfort of the heat could not melt the chill that had settled deep into her chest.

"You haven't spoken since we left," Kiyoshi said softly; his eyes watched in a steady gaze without intruding. "That is understandable; you have gone through something nobody should ever be made to go through.

Seina's lips parted, but nothing came out. Again, the image of her mother's dead body flashed across her mind, and she snapped them shut once more as the tightness hit her throat. She didn't know how to talk about it, and she didn't even know where to begin.

Kiyoshi seemed to understand. He didn't push her. He leaned back a bit, his eyes staring into the flames. "I lost my family to demons, too," he said after an extremely long moment of silence. His voice was quiet, but an undercurrent of sorrow pulsed beneath. "It was a long time ago. Yet.I can still remember that night like it was yesterday. I was your age-maybe a little older."

Seina's eyes flashed up to meet his, and for the first time, it was not the composed, stoical warrior she saw staring back at her. There was an abyss of pain in his eyes, a quiet, wordless ache that reflected her own.

"Did you—" she started, the words hoarse and barely audible. She swallowed and tried again. "Did you ever get over it?"

Kiyoshi's face didn't change, but his eyes did; they released tension. "You don't get over something like that," he said. "You learn to live with it. The pain doesn't go away, but you can use it to fuel something greater. That's why I became a demon slayer, so nobody else has to go through what I went through.

Seina nodded, her hands sinking deep into her clothes. Never had she felt this small, this powerless. The loss of her family had torn a hole in her heart so big that she did not know how to fill.

"Why did the demons come into my village?" she asked barely above a whisper. "Why did they take my family?"

Kiyoshi watched her a long time, then let his breath out in a soft sigh. "Demons hunt humans for one reason-blood. It's their nourishment. Some demons are stronger than others, and with greater strength can come the devastation of an entire village. It is not personal. It is simply the nature of what they are."

"Not personal." The words tasted bitter on her tongue. "It felt personal."

Kiyoshi was silent for a time, then nodded. "I understand. That is why we fight them-to prevent them from doing to other people what they did to you."

Seina stared into the fire, her mind racing. She wanted so badly to believe there was more to that-a reason-something-that would explain to her why her family had been taken from her. The only thing she could feel was the emptiness in her growing, as if the mist had seeped right into her soul.

A while afterward, Kiyoshi spoke again. "There's a place I can take you. The Demon Slayer Corps. They train warriors like myself to fight demons, to protect those who can't protect themselves. You don't have to decide on anything now, but if you want, I can take you there."

Seina looked up at him, her purple eyes wide and uncertain. "Train. to fight the demons?"

Kiyoshi nodded. "It won't bring your family back, but it would give you a purpose. A way to channel the pain you're feeling into something that mattered.

She continued in her head, her mind racing with thought after thought. Being a Demon Slayer was simply impossible, she had lived an enclosed life in the misty village all of her days and had never even seen one of them until tonight: how could she ever be a warrior like Kiyoshi? And yet, something about the idea kindled a small fire deep inside of her, a little flicker of hope amidst her overwhelming grief.

"I don't know that I can," she said, her voice breaking.

Kiyoshi's eyes didn't falter. "No one knows if they can until they try. But I see something in you, Seina. How you survived, the way you keep on going despite it all-it speaks to strength. Strength which can be honed, if you are willing."

Seina didn't say anything immediately. She turned her stare back into the fire, watching the dance of the flames. Memories of that night weighed her mind down, but another thing stirred inside her, too-a growing resolve. It was just she didn't want to feel helpless anymore. Not any longer. She didn't want to be that girl, helpless and powerless, who had watched her family die and could do nothing about it.

She nodded a little louder than her voice was. "I'll go," she said soft, the tone barely louder than the fire's cracks.

Kiyoshi wasn't caught off guard, but he did look happy. "We leave at break of dawn, then. It isn't an easy journey to the Demon Slayer Corps, but I will guide you."

Seina nodded, the decision falling upon her like a shroud. She had no idea what to expect from the Demon Slayer Corps, but for sure, she no longer could stay in the mists. This mountain-home of hers had turned into a graveyard, haunted by memories which she could never keep out.

In her sleep that night by the fire, her dreams churned through swirling mists, faces lost. Then something else was there, in the dark places: a silhouette, faint, dark but with a held sword. Herself, yet different-stronger, fiercer. She awoke, clinging to the image, and let it anchor her as she prepared for the road, not really knowing which way she would take.