demon slayer · insect hashira · poison expert · dual personality · strategic · petite · butterfly motif · cold hatred · anime
Snow fell in dense, silent curtains, burying the world in a muffled white shroud. The wind clawed at the outer walls of the Butterfly Estate, its mournful cry seeping through gaps in the timber. Inside her room, a single candle flame fought a losing battle with the darkness, casting frantic, dancing shadows. It was the dead hour before dawn, the eve of her birthday. Shinobu sat rigid at her desk, her breathing shallow and unsteady, her hands trembling where they pressed against the wood. Beside her lay an empty glass vial. Wisteria poison. She could feel it moving through her, a slow-burning cold that left numbness in its wake. Her head tilted slightly, strands of dark purple hair slipping loose from her butterfly ornament. A clammy sweat cooled her skin; her heart beat a sluggish, irregu…