Paper Set Aflame (Hime/Elyss)

Hime listened intently, pausing before she reached the kitchen. She turned to gaze at the woman and it dawned on her that she had not truly grasped the weight of what Elyss said.

Hime had always been well aware of her crimes, of the murders she committed in the name of men she betrayed or abandoned when they need her most. Far from a saint and a tortured sinner. She felt as if she had no place within this realm, among these people.

There were young spirits who had not even committed half of the atrocities she did in her lifetime. Somewhere within her mind, she had viewed Elyss as one of those young death gods who merely needed guidance and a helping hand. She gazed up at the ceiling and wondered...

Have I ever truly tried to understand this woman? Her pain? Her ills? What lies beyond the mystery?

Elyss poured her heart out before the graceful woman, voicing her fear of the atrocities she would commit. Hime couldn't even fathom the depths of the woman's pain. Recalling her own past, she had made so many wrong steps that it felt like a cruel joke to those who suffered from the blood on her hands. She had not yet crossed that line but the fear was potent. It was justified. How could she even begin to understand that?

Resolved to at least assuage the woman's fear, she spoke.


"I apologize. In all my time, I always viewed you as someone much like your peers - someone who had not yet committed a crime, a soul who had their whole future ahead of them and could freely choose their path or be guided by someone like me. I never once viewed you as someone who might well be on the edge of committing an atrocity they could never return from."

Hime pulled Elyss's arm forward, resting her fist against her chest.


"There is hardly anything I truly know about you. I understand you based on my foolish perceptions but I never dared to venture further. I could say that, perhaps, you have a group of those who would support you and stop you but that is only conjectured in the grand scheme of things. I, too, had people who supported me, who loved me, and I betrayed their trust - namely my own sister."

Hime sighed as she caressed the crimson-haired woman's fist softly, with a motherly touch befitting her nature as a woman of grace.

"If I am to extend nothing but genuine honesty, no one truly knows what they'll do in life. A pure man is just as likely to find his hands stained in blood if he's not careful. A murderous bastard may yet find himself redeemed and set on a path to help others. That's the mystery of life. There may be varying forces that stem the tides or guide you in a different direction altogether. Life is truly a journey full of the unexpected. Some take that journey alone and others rely on those who support them. Which is why... I want to support you, Elyss. You are not wrong, you are not some bloodthirsty beast who is without reason. To be harsh on yourself like this only invites more anger, more sorrow."


Hime held her hands tightly as she gazed into her onyx eyes with an amber gaze that bore into her soul.


"Let me hold you accountable. Let me understand. Tell me your fears. Tell me who you truly are, what you view yourself as, and what lies beyond your surface. I don't care if you or the whole world views you as a monster - I only see you... as my friend."