A new day dawned and Sanemi felt no better, much to his disappointment, as he'd hoped to leave as soon as physically possible. Unfortunately, the sickness that clung onto his body was a stubborn one and unwilling to let him go without a fight. The white-haired man rolled over in bed, away from the bright sunshine that mocked him so that he faced the doorway. The Hashira wondered if his younger brother would make yet another appearance today, for he hadn't the energy to deal with him at present and didn't want to see Genya continually upset by his coldness. Cold sweat pooled the bed sheets, dampening Sanemi's clothes and resulting in his hair clinging to his forehead. Shinobu entered the room, unhappy to see Sanemi in such a way as it meant the medicine had worn off and the man's temperature had skyrocketed during the night. The woman immediately shoved a thermometer into Sanemi's mouth, brushing aside strands of hair. "How are you feeling, Shinazugawa?" Sanemi answered with a weak groan, barely opening his eyes to look to his fellow pillar. When Kocho read the thermometer it confirmed her suspicions that Sanemi's temperature had risen and was higher than before. The woman quickly replaced the damp rag that had been on Sanemi's forehead with a fresh one and coaxed the man into taking more medicine, though Sanemi was so weak Kocho had to place the pills into his mouth and hold the glass of water to his lips for him. Sanemi was deteriorating. Kocho had provided Sanemi with a higher dose of medicine in the hopes it would take the edge off his fever. As she left Sanemi to rest she caught Aoi in the corridor, where she instructed the girl to do hourly checks on the man to monitor his condition.
Genya, having gotten himself ready for the day as quickly as he could, promptly left his room and made a beeline towards the room Sanemi was residing in. "Ah, Lady Shinobu? Do you have any news regarding Sanemi?" Genya called out to Shinobu as he rounded the corner to the hallway where his brother's room was located. The young woman turned around, a small frown present on her face. This instantly turned Genya's stomach. "I'm afraid your brother's temperature has increased, he's very weak and needs to rest. If you're going to sit with him be aware that his fever may cause him to hallucinate." The young boy gasped, anxiety and worry taking hold at hearing his brother had become more unwell. Bowing in thanks to Shinobu, Genya did not hesitate to dart to Sanemi's bedside, hearing his sibling taking laboured breaths. Sensing a presence, Sanemi weakly turned his head, taking a moment for his vision to adjust to the image swimming before him. "Sanemi? It's me, Genya. Shinobu tells me you aren't doing too well so whether you like it or not, I'm sitting with you." The boy proclaimed, tensing up as he waited for his elder to shout, scream or even throw something at him to force him to leave the room. Instead, Sanemi merely stared at Genya before, to Genya's astonishment, reaching out a hand to him. "Brother, what are you doing out of bed? Go back to sleep, you'll wake our siblings." Genya couldn't believe what he was hearing. His elder brother was undoubtedly hallucinating that he was with him, at home with their siblings.
"Genya, you can sleep in bed with me if you can't sleep, your Nemi will protect you." Nemi. That was the nickname Genya had lovingly given to his big brother at a young age. This scene was distressing for Genya, for this period in time was the last time Sanemi spoke to him with such kindness in his voice and one of the last times they spent with their siblings and mother alive. In that instant, all of the memories of the horrid night that changed both of the brothers lives poured into Genya's brain, which made him feel ill with grief and sorrow. Delicately, Genya took Sanemi's hand, treasuring the touch as it had been years since Sanemi had touched him so lovingly, let alone even hugged him. Sanemi, in his delirious state, pulled Genya onto the bed with him where Genya found his head planted squarely against his brother's chest and his brother's scarred, muscular arms wrapped tightly around him, unwilling to let him go. Genya couldn't help but shed some tears. Though it was due to the fever, this was the first time since they were children that they had shared a hug and though Genya knew he should have pulled away, he moved into the embrace. His brothers touch, his heartbeat, his scent and his breathing all collaborated to create a soothing, comforting experience for Genya that he wished he could cling onto until the end of time itself.
In that moment, neither of the Shinazugawa brothers noticed Tanjiro at the door, who had come in search of Genya to see if he wanted to participate in training before he was to set off on another mission. "Why're you crying, Genya? Did you have another bad dream? I know, I'll sing the lullaby mother sings, that'll help you get back to sleep." Tanjiro sadly sighed, seeing just how much Genya had craved his brother's touch and just how much it meant to him. The sickly man began to croak out the words to an old lullaby whilst stroking Genya's hair. Genya, who had his eyes shut, listened to his brother's words and his heart thumping away, feeling a sense of calmness he had not felt since he was an infant.
Thump, thump, thump. Thump, thump, thump.
Once Sanemi had stopped singing, Genya tilted his head upwards to gaze at his elder sibling and saw that he'd drifted off. Decidedly, Genya too closed his eyes once more and rested alongside his big brother, taking in his brother's touch and smell as he nuzzled closer to the elder. Tanjiro, who had watched the two through a crack in the doorframe, closed the door and left the two alone. The young swordsman hoped that this interaction would help their strained relationship.
After a few hours of slumber, Sanemi stirred in his sleep, waking gradually. The man wondered what time it was and how much longer he'd have to reside in the Butterfly Mansion. Although, he noted that he felt his fever had subsided a little as he felt more alert compared to beforehand, though it wasn't enough as he still felt downright awful. A weight pressed against his body registered in Sanemi's head and he peered down to the source, stunned to see his younger brother cuddling up to him, fast asleep. Before he could do or say anything, Shinobu cleared her throat from the doorway to grab his attention. "He hasn't left your side all day Shinazugawa, even when you hallucinated, pulled him into a tight embrace and sung him a lullaby." Kocho explained, tilting her head to get a clearer look at the sleeping Genya. Sanemi clicked his tongue against his teeth, immediately becoming defensive. "You can't be serious, there's no way I did that. And if I did, I take it back so I'll wake him to move or I'll throw him off." Before Shinobu could interject, Sanemi roughly shook Genya's shoulder, "wake up now, nap time is over." However instead of waking, as Sanemi expected he would, Genya wrapped his arms around Sanemi's waist tighter whilst letting out a gentle snore. This infuriated Sanemi who, despite his weakened condition, decided to shove Genya off and onto the cold, hard wooden floor. But before he could do so, Genya began to mumble in his sleep.
"Nemi...I'm sorry, I love you big brother...don't go..." The pillar seized his movements, staring down at his baby brother in shock before turning to Shinobu, who observed the situation quietly from the doorway. Was he hallucinating right now? In that moment, the feared wind hashira hadn't the heart to merely toss his sibling to one side and instead, snuggled back down into bed and cuddled Genya, planting a delicate kiss atop his head. "If you tell anyone about this, I'll deny it." Sanemi coughed to Shinobu, who chuckled lightly before leaving the two Shinazugawa brothers in peace. A few moments later, Genya began to wake and attempted to move away from Sanemi, figuring he'd leave the elder to rest before he woke and caused a ruckus over Genya's appearance. Only, to his shock, Sanemi held onto his baby brother, whispering in his ear in a raspy voice, "don't leave. Please stay". Genya complied with Sanemi's wishes. After all, he wanted to help restore his brother's health. With that, the two Shinazugawa brothers fell asleep in each others arms.