Chapter Text
She felt the tip of the needle enter her arm, the liquid inside the clear vial emptying before her eyes.
It's not that she winces, the pain wasn't new. But it's more like an uneasy impression that burrows itself inside, having her eyebrows pinching with the feeling of the poison seeping into her arm.
Under the pretense of a smile, she watches the skin of the injection sight turn into a bruising purple, her smile widens. She had a reason for doing all of this, one that she believes her sister would be proud of. A reason that makes her feel ashamed everytime she hides herself in a vacant room to inject herself with a harmful substance.
It was only when she discarded the needles and cotton balls into the garbage that her arms started feeling numb.
A couple minutes later and she curses, her arms becoming immobile to her commands. She tries to raise them, but they only stay limp under her waiting gaze.
Her eyes twitch in mild annoyance, her smile dropping the slightest bit.
She presumes that she would just have to keep her workload light for the day. Once she has the time, she can sort this out privately without issue( hopefully ).
She shimmies back into her haori, casting a long glance at her arms, still numb of feeling and motion and walks out of the room, having to use her feet to force the sliding doors apart and turning back around once she steps out of the room, checking to make sure not a shred of evidence was left behind.
Still, having to get to a meeting, she hurries, her feet tapping against the wooden floors from her estate, to the dusty paved roads of the village, and onto the pristine rocks of Master's estate.
Here, Kocho Shinobu strengths the appearance of her smile, feeling her lips pull further on her face as she enters through the (thankfully)open tatami doors, stepping past the threshold with a serene greeting(a complete opposite of what she was feeling), walking past the line of the few seated hashiras to sit in an open spot.
Shinobu turns her head to the side, facing the side view of the youngest Hashira, Tokito Mouchiro. He stares ahead, his eyes empty of thought, frowning slightly.
Shinobu pipes up, interrupting his thoughts and asks him about his progress. It was her duty as one of the caretakers in the corps to seek updates on the slayer's health.
Was he remembering past occurrences well? Any headaches or blurry vision? It was all important to note, in case she needed to perform a checkup.
It was in fact, beneficial for the hashiras to be in the best shape, for their safety and to deal with the demons they encounter.
Muichiro only responds in a brief sentence, quelling her worries with his usual indifference. Still, Shinobu's glad she doesn't have to treat him for the day, especially since her arms weren't responding to her wants.
Slowly but surely, the other remaining Hashira's walk into the room, some with some form of a greeting. While others-like a certain reclusive man-stride into the room and take a seat, ignoring the others with little regard.
Shinobu sighs inwardly, it was bad enough that Tomioka didn't speak, let alone hold conversation, but it was good manners to greet your comrades. Particularly when you haven't seen said colleagues in a while.
But she digresses. Shinobu bows to the best of her abilities when Master walks out, guided by his two children like usual. This time, it was Rengoku who wished the master well. Then the gathering starts.
The meeting passes like it usually would. In disagreement.
Nevertheless, Shinobu tries her best to keep calm and level-headed. She keeps telling herself: ' continue to smile, just like Kanae would want you to. Placate those who are angry, and remind them to act professional. '
And she would've followed this ideal like she usually would, but it was harder due to the lack of feeling in her arms as they hung by her side instead of being placed on her lap like usual. She'd just have to hope no one is paying great attention today.
Finally, the meeting ends, and the Hashira are no closer to figuring out a new strategy to defeat demons once and for all.
Master dismisses the meeting with his usual cadence that calms their raising voices instantly.
After the dismissal, Shinobu stands, using her legs and bids goodbye to her comrades, wishing them well and exiting through the thankfully open tatami doors, courtesy of a previously angry Shinazugawa storming out.
It was when Shinobu's on the road back to her estate that she felt a presence trailing behind her. She stops and turns to glance behind her, slightly shocked when she sees Tomioka stop after her, gazing back with his usual solitary stare.
Shinobu asks where he's heading to, considering that he might be heading to the Butterfly mansion for some patch up post mission.
Tomioka only responds curtly, insisting he follows her for the day since he noticed her arms weren't seeming to work to her wants.
Shinobu's smile curls further, thanking Tomioka for the offer but insisting that she could take care of herself just fine.
It seemed like Tomika was full of surprises today because he is determined to help her for the day. Shinobu couldn't say no, seeing as his eyes abate from the usual reclusive nature to concern. Or Tomioka's version of concern with his eyebrows drawing together.
For the remainder of the day, Tomioka spends the afternoon and later into the evening, shadowing Shinobu from one task to another. It was overwhelming for the slayers she treated when two Hashira were in the same room. One a shining beacon of friendliness and another standing back, looking out around the room, intimidating to others.
As the hours passed, Shinobu started to feel the tingling residing in her arms lessen throughout the day. She could start to move her fingers, gently flexing them and reveling in some satisfaction when she could twist her wrists an hour later.
Whenever she had to carry something of heavy weight, Tomioka was there to grab it for her and follow her to different rooms as she instructed him to place it somewhere different or to take out the contents and hand it over to the Butterfly triplets, or Aoi.
At the end of the day, when the sunny sky with puffy clouds turned into a dark horizon with a chill in the air, Tomioka bids his farewell, wishing for her recovery to be swift.
Shinobu returns the goodbye with her own, her smile feeling genuine for once.