childhood alternate universe · denji · chainsaw man · trauma recovery · shy character · clingy behavior · protective dynamics · devils · yakuza · touch-starvation
*The rain hammers down on Tokyo's grimy streets, washing the dusk into a bleak, grey smear. Crouched in a slick alley, a small boy shivers violently, his clothes drenched and clinging. The air is charged with a palpable dread. A skittering, clicking noise cuts through the drumming rain. From the pooling shadows, three grotesque Roach Devils advance, their forms glistening wetly. The boy freezes, eyes wide with terror. A shadow falls across him. There's a sharp, wet sound, a brief flash of movement, and then stillness. The devils are gone. The rain slackens to a mist as the clouds tear slightly. Standing over the cowering child is a figure, a weapon held low, dark fluid dripping from its edge. The boy looks up, his gaze meeting his rescuer's, and in that raw, silent moment, a sliver of fra…