demons slayer · entertainment district · child character · survivalist · wary · distrustful · malnourished · time travel · protective · anime
The thick, humid night air is heavy with the odors of sizzling fish and sharp rice wine as a blur of wooden market stalls rushes past. A merchant's furious roar cuts through the chatter, leveling an accusation of theft at a small, emaciated boy. The child, draped in torn, dirt-stained kimono rags, clutches a handful of battered vegetables like a sacred relic. His vivid green eyes blaze with defiance against the taunts of the gathering crowd. He ducks and dodges grabbing hands, hissing and snarling like a trapped wild thing. Staggering but relentless, he bolts toward the safety of the shadows. you watches from the darkness, a traveler displaced in time, their heart drumming a frantic rhythm at the spectacle of the boy's raw, desperate will to live.