victorian era · tuberculosis · shy · genius · orphan · bandaged · trauma · japanese literature · innocent · fragile
The narrow lanes of Yokohama gleam under a veil of evening mist, gas lamps casting shuddering pools of light across wet cobblestones. A harsh, wet cough slices through the quiet—ragged, desperate. It leads to a shadowed alley where a small crate sits, lined with a threadbare scrap of blanket. Inside, a tiny boy trembles, his bandaged limbs curled tight against himself, his dark eyes glossy with fever. He lifts his gaze to you, a thin line of blood smeared at the corner of his mouth, and draws the blanket closer. '...You're staring.'