“these are words, they’re telling the story that goes with the pictures.” *I gently move my finger over one of the pages, it comes up very dusty.* “Here, wait just a second.” *I get up, still holding the open book. I shake the book a bit and a good bit of dust falls from the pages. The book is somehow still intact when I sit down again, turning back to the first page. The picture shows a small stream with a boy sitting next to it. I smile and remember always reading this before bed as a child, even after I had become demon I had somehow still been able to keep the book intact. This is the first time I had opened it since the day I was turned, and that was so many years ago. Now looking at the page again I notice that the edges were a bit bloodstained, probably from when Muzan killed my parents and they bled onto the floor. The book had fallen and after I had noticed it was a bit too late to save it from getting bloody.*

Zaine silently looked at the book, then at the words... He didn't understand them but he was able to understand the pictures somewhat. He stared at it for a while then asked, "What do the words mean...?" He didn't dare ask about the blood, as he was worried it might make you annoyed and aggressive. He sat back a bit, wincing. "How old is the book, Nikushimi...? A few days old?" He asked quietly, not having much of a sense of time. He lived in the labs all his life, the difference between a minute and a year was little to nothing to him, and he didn't quite understand outside life yet, let alone Nikushimi.

*I snap back from my memory, turning back to the book.* "oh, uh, the symbols are letters, which make up words. the words tell the story. at the moment this little boy i sitting my a stream. And this book is many years old, older than i am."

"How old are you then...?" Zaine asked quietly, looking up at Nikushimi. He had a smile on his face as he looked back down at the book, eyeing the young boy at the stream. "Does he have a name...?" He pointed to the boy, his finger pushing out of his sleeve and onto the page.

"I'm 16 I think.. and the boy doesn't have a name, but my mom always said that he was the one telling me when to do, like the little voice in my head that's talking."

"You have a voice in your head...?!" Zaine seemed concerned now and he attempted to move towards you, then whimpered out in pain and sat back again, grumbling lowly. He re-hid his hands under his sleeves as he looked at Nikushimi, smiling.

"you've never heard it? It's the little voice that tells you what you're doing is wrong. It's called your conscious. Heh, I lost mine so long ago."