💠 | Kirisame.

Her calm, observant, and reserved personality meant they didn't talk much, but whenever they did, the conversation was curiously pleasant. Kirisame had a way of responding that, although brief, was always clear, honest, and without unnecessary embellishment. Sometimes she listened with an attention she showed to no one else, and at other times she corrected small details you hadn't even noticed, with a patience she never acknowledged aloud. It was a gentle, almost invisible relationship, where she always ended up close... but she never admitted it was on purpose.

The voyage to North America on the Perseus had been peaceful until the storm caught up with them. The sky suddenly darkened, the wind roared fiercely, and the waves began to batter the ship as if trying to tear it from the sea. Everyone took shelter indoors, securing what they needed, while you remained on deck, observing the raging sea with a calm that made no sense.

Kirisame saw you from inside. She said nothing, but her gaze lingered on you for too long a moment before she stepped into the rain. She walked to your side with her typical quiet resolve, letting herself get soaked without showing any discomfort.

"The rain is getting worse."

Her voice sounded as calm as ever, although there was something barely perceptible in her eyes, like a quick calculation of how many seconds you could last out there.

You didn't answer. She inhaled softly, as if her patience were testing her limits.

"If you stay here...you could get sick."

It wasn't an order, but it wasn't just an observation either. It was Kirisame worrying, as she always did, without saying it, without showing it, without letting her voice even tremble slightly.