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demonslayedher · 3 years

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Your content on Kny is interesting, being a Kny fan I would like to share a cusiority. During the final battle did you notice that the Hashira were passive about the death of some? When Shinobu died only Tanjiro had a reaction because of how busy he was; Mitsuri didn't seem sad and when Iguro remembered who died in the middle of the final battle he didn't even mention her. What did you think? It would have been nice if Gotouge had shown us what the Hashira's thought when the others died

[cont.] I'm the anonymous person who asked you the question about the Hashira who fell in the fight, Tumblr makes people write very little. Apart from Tanjiro they seemed cold to me, even for Tokito; the only one affected was Himejima; when always Iguro mentioned him during the clash with Muzan it was like he was thinking normally. There wasn't time to mourn for the dead but I was expecting a slightly deeper reaction. Anyway for Shinobu yes there was Inosuke and Kanao but the pillars are important too

Thank you for the Ask, time to get into it! This served as a good excuse to flip back through of a lot of the later volumes... or rather, a huge chunk of the series. Short Answer: I don’t think Mitsuri knew about Shinobu’s death. Longer Answer: A walk-through of the Pillars’ situations in the final showdown and a partial analysis of Kimetsu-style story pacing.

Disclaimer: I finished this around 2am. I chose to leave it rambling and unedited and typo-ridden. HAVE MY FEELS, I’M DISHING THEM.

(Disclaimer: This isn’t meant to be a plug for my own fics, but since they are born out of my emotional experience of canon, mentions will make their way in. U fu fu.) First, absolutely yes on there being no time to mourn. From the moment the Ubuyashiki Mansion blows up in volume 16 to the actual end of the fighting in volume 23, that is one hell of a night; this final arc(s) had NO CHILL. Like, wow. It’s been a long time since I followed another battle-driven manga, but that seems like a lot, especially for a relatively short series. And I was initially happy to dismiss all the lack of satisfying sadness as being due to the fact that they are in *PANIC MODE* and entirely focused on fighting, but that is also not necessarily the case; they do come off slightly cold. I want to touch a bit on what we want to see the characters mourn each other, but also why I think it works out a bit better that we didn’t; from a purely narrative standpoint. LET THEM BE SAD: Parasocial Needs Science says we form bonds with fictional characters that affect our brains in very similar and impactful ways, so our feelings are legit when they get killed off. It affects us like a breakup or other goodbye and makes us crave closure. As for my own assumptions, we look for proxy characters in-universe to give those characters we love the attention we wish to; their sadness validates our sadness, watching them get emotional can be super cathartic, and a good mourning arc can provide satisfying closure. This is something we got with Rengoku, canonically loved by like, everyone. Hell, even the guy who killed him was sad. Just to rub salt into it, the most recent fanbook that includes a section about how the Pillars see each other, and it drives home that even if we never saw much or any canon interaction between him and any other given character, they’re all like, “Oh yeah, Rengoku, he’s a great guy.” And, he’s the only character we really get space to mourn, pacing-wise. First, because of when it happens in the plot, this gives the story time to show us each and everyone one of the Pillars hearing the news; it gives them times to process it (which Tokitou clearly needed), and most of us, it takes us in depth through how it affects Tanjirou, our main character whose emotions that we, the readers, are most in touch with. Rengoku got star treatment in the way he was mourned, and we readers get to lap that up. So then when we don’t get that in-universe star mourning treatment, it does feel a bit jarring by comparison. Gotouge did say she was sorry to hurt everyone, but these are the conditions the little humans were up against all along and a point driven home again and again; even with power on par with demons through the attainment of a mark; even Pillars are just breakable humans who will never be able to regenerate like demons can, hence why their stakes are so much higher in every battle they go into. Furthermore, the Pillars are more ready for this than anyone else, they of all the characters would be the best at keeping their emotions in check in the heat of a battle. Which means they had to keep them in check for seven volumes of near constant battle, love it or hate it. KIMETSU LOGIC: The Writing Sins That Make This Manga What It Is I could go on and on and on and on about the writing sins this manga commits and how it shows that it’s Gotouge’s first time writing something of this length. In manga not all of it can be blamed on the author alone because the editors have a very significant influence, but yeah, this is not the most amazingly crafted story out there, by a long shot. Would I change any of it, though? Well, a few things, yes, of course, out of personal preference. But on the whole, no. It’s the collective errors that stamp KnY with its style and make it what it is, and I find it as endearing as all the randomly super goofy art. Now, when it comes to the lack of Pillars reacting to new of each others’ deaths, I wouldn’t necessarily classify that itself as a fault, and if I were Gotouge’s editor, I probably would have encouraged her to keep it to a minimum too. After all, I would be considered with selling a new shot of tension with every week’s installment to keep any readers from getting bored with the constant battle. And dang it, THAT TENSION WAS HIGH, those battles were remarkably emotional and tense through and through. The breaks in tension that we got were necessarily and not distracting, with the notable exception of Iguro’s past. That was clumsy placement. I’ll be honest, I didn’t bond with Iguro as much as a character because he lost his earlier chances to be appealing to me, and by the time the chapter with his flashback came out, I DIDN’T CARE, I waited anxiously all week to see what was happening to Tanjiro and was invested enough to have an appetite for the additional Sumiyoshi and Yoriichi bits, but dang it, Snake Pillar was getting in the way of what my emotions were primed for at that point. But, such is the way of fickle weekly readers; with THAT MUCH tension going on, readers crave a little breather here and there with a look at who else might taking in a breather in a flashback. We got bits and pieces of that mostly through flashback, like Tamayo’s memories of conversation with Shinobu experienced in real time through Muzan, as well as in-real-time moments with the characters having very slight chances to catch their breath (no pun intended). But, how well those breaths worked depending on each character, and how the readers’ emotions were getting slammed week to week. Just like how I as a weekly reader (by that point) had no appetite for an Iguro flashback while eager to move forward, there likewise would have been limited appetite for mourning, and we’re stuck with who we got as proxy characters to react through. ACTION, REACTION: The Rhythm of Basic Writing Advice It has often been said that in writing, something should happen in a scene, and the next scene should be a reaction to it. In the next scene something new happens, and likewise, there is a reaction. We could also thing of this as stages within the same scene, like the part when the music changes or the moment the battle has ended but we’re still on the battlefield. In Rengoku’s case, we got one big happening, and then a whole lot of reaction drizzled through the story after that. In the Infinity Fortress case, we get a big happening with the Ubuyashiki Mansion blowing up and then--a big happening!--a big happening!--a big happening--! A--uh oh, there’s a reactio---NEVERMIND, THINGS ARE STILL HAPPENING, GOTOUGE, PLEASE, THIS HURTS, OW, OW, HOW ARE YOU SO CRUEL, WE GET IT, THIS SITUATION IS AWFUL, PLEASE STOP HURTING THEM---

The reactions are there, scattered throughout. They’re short, but they sure make themselves count. While Tanjirou is our Empathy Personified hero, it’s natural that we get more of his reactions, but the lack of them in other characters is, I would say, a natural fault of having a huge cast to work with it. Once you start dragging too many other characters into the reactions, the actions have trouble moving forward, and with the level of seven volumes worth of tension it’s the actions that keep readers hooked and buying magazines. THEY’RE ONLY CORVIDS, OK: Now We’re Actually Looking At Canon Details Now that all being said, although it’s easy to dismiss a lot of Kimetsu Logic as amateurish at first, on further reflection, the little worldbuilding logic does excuse itself for not plunging each of the characters into a period of reaction to actions happening elsewhere. Not all the birds had Yushiro’s papers. Not all birds were created equal. It’s really hard to navigate that place. Ergo, communication was probably highly imperfect; not all the crows knew everything going on. We don’t feel that as readers because we’re seeing Kiriya and his sisters get all the available communications. In Iguro and Mitsuri’s case in particular, I suspect that might not even had been Mitsuri’s crow (as that one has a distinct personality and accessory) giving her orders to gather where Muzan is. It was probably any old down-to-business crow working with the information it had as clearly as it could in the battle that was most difficult to physically navigate. If Mitsuri’s crow (named Urara in the most recent fanbook) had been there, I imagine she’d have been having difficulty that whole time to even stay within a close range of that battle. Furthermore, a crow like that with a strong bond with Mitsuri might had also judged that telling her about Shinobu’s death was a dangerous distraction, and chosen to withhold information. The fanbook specifies that Iguro’s crow Yuuan was the one who told him about how Tokitou got a red blade (in fact, this is basically the only thing said of this crow besides its name and gender). To able to report in such detail that Iguro could analyze that Tokitou attained the red blade by the strength of his grip, that probably quite an accomplishment to have either witnessed that much, or to pass on crucial information that detailed and quickly. At that time, Iguro and Mitsuri were physically separated and she was distracted by the crow giving her orders to gather where Muzan was, so she might not even have overheard that Tokitou had died. As for Iguro, the second fanbook tells us that because Tokitou was young he had hoped he wouldn’t die. There was no opportunity to mourn him, and they weren’t close enough for that to throw him off much from battle, but on a Pillar to Pillar level, I think the amount of thought Iguro did dedicated to Tokitou showed a certain level of esteem for him and regret at this passing. What would have been nice? Maybe a little look over his shoulder to Mitsuri like “I hope she didn’t hear that.” That would have revealed a tender side of Iguro in a very short use of panels. I want to come back to analyzing Mitsuri’s reaction later, so let’s keep focusing on the loss of Tokitou. Once he attained more of his sense of self back, it seems he preferred the company of Corp Members closed to him in age (if we go by his little flashbacks, which in true Kimetsu Logic, are things we didn’t know about until they come up in flashbacks). Most of the Pillars weren’t especially close with him, even if they did care about his wellbeing, as they seemed particular aware of how young he was. Sanemi probably had never interacted much with Tokitou until that battle, and *OKAY, HERE IT IS, THE UPCOMING FANFIC SELF-PLUG* one of the things I really liked working with in my post-canon fic is that there’s a point at which thinking about Tokitou forces Sanemi to deal with all the trauma he’s buried from that battle. I figure it would hit him later; he had a good excuse of a distraction. Ugh. Man. My heart hurts again thinking of that chapter. Let’s also not forget, after Himejima showed his respects for Tokitou both quickly and sincerely, he couldn’t allow Sanemi to deal with Genya’s death until after everything was over. All the Pillars had to think like this. What would had been nice? I liked this reaction scene to two simultaneous and horrific deaths exactly as it was. Ow. Ahhhh. Owwwwww, it’s hurting again. This is catharsis exactly the way I like it. Let’s keep going with Himejima, the only one to have known to expect all this, and who stayed ready and likely hoped to bring down Muzan all by himself without any other sacrifices (welp, so much for that). There’s a scene in the novels that implies he had some idea that Shinobu wasn’t intending to make it out of the upcoming battle(s) alive, and I imagine he felt the same regret and bitter acceptance in advance that he also felt with Ubuyashiki. If we heard the news about Shinobu like Tanjirou and Giyuu did, I imagine he was hurt but it wouldn’t have been noticeable, and he probably would not be surprised even at how quickly it happened. What would had been nice? Anything. Just a “How pitiful” and some tears as he runs through the halls woulda’ been great. So since Giyuu did hear it loud and clear with Tanjirou, I first want to point out that whether that was Tanjirou’s crow or not (might not had been, because his crow was busy with a letter delivery from Senjurou at the time too), that crow must had loved to shared details; maybe even details that were not necessary. Like, would telling the lower level Corp members everything really help? Wouldn’t the loss of each Pillar make them lose their nerve? Was it because that crow was wearing one of Yushiro’s papers that it had to report extra detail for Ubuyashiki HQ? Whatever the case, Giyuu is initially shocked about Shinobu and then is like, “what is that paper the crow has? It sure is reporting things fast.” What would have been nice? ANYTHING MORE THAN ONE PANEL OF SHOCK. Come on, Giyuu, give the GiyuuShino shippers S O M E T H I N G. Granted, if Tanjirou had been killed in battle with Akaza, I believe Giyuu would have had an initial outburst of emotion, but then gotten himself under control real quick and stayed that way until it was safe to break down (which he did immediately later on, since the threat was gone--but he was just as soon picking up a sword and stabbing him, so again, Pillar-mode must come before experiencing emotions). I interpret canon as that even though Giyuu might had found it easily to address Shinobu in conversation due to frequency in how much they had conversed and the fact that she would usually talk to him first, he would never had considered himself especially close with her (since he never saw himself close with any of the Pillars). I feel their relationship had potential to grow closer if Giyuu had actually gone out of his way to communicate more with her, and he probably would had if they both survived, but at the time she died he probably still felt a distance, which is why it did him harder when Tanjirou--someone who Giyuu did actually get to a point of enjoying conversation with--was dead right in front of him. (Side not, oh man, OH MAN, being a weekly reader was so tough then. I still have so many emotions from that week. Oh man. Oof. Ouch.)

Of note, Giyuu had the best opportunity for reflection on a comrade’s death since he had enough recovery time once he woke up to build a fire and treat wounds, and Tanjirou took that chance to read a letter.

What would have been nice? AGAIN, GIYUU, ANYTHING, but after that battle I think he deserved to disassociate a bit. Also of note, I don’t know that they had complete information either, because NO ONE (by “no one” I mean Tanjirou and Inosuke) seemed to hear anything about Zenitsu single-handedly killing Upper Moon Six and surviving it. What would had been nice: “Good for you, Zenitsu, I hope you’re okay” or “Six? Again? Didn’t we already do that? There was a third??” or “well I got Upper Moon Two SO THERE” or “..........are you sure?” or even way, way after all is said and done, off in epilogue times, “you fought WHO by YOURSELF???” but I digress. Now back to Shinobu, losing her so early on in this marathon of high-stakes battles made her death seem forever ago by the time we got to another Pillar death. It would had been nice for more of them to react both with “no, not Shinobu!” and “we are in deep trouble” sort of ways. That made the glimpses we got of her in flashback feel way, way more nostalgic, since for our experiences as readers, she had already been gone a very long time. I like that the battle with Douma got stretched over so long a span of the manga, they really showed the stakes in how difficult of a foe he was, even if that battle was itself was relatively shorter than others. And as stand-ins for the readers to mourn Shinobu, I love how we got that both through Kanao and through Inosuke. But yes, it sure would had been nice to get something from... Mitsuri. Now, if I had only read the events of canon, manga chapter to manga chapter, and even the Taisho Secrets, I still never would have guessed that Shinobu and Mitsuri had such a warm friendship. I know this purely from the fanbooks and novels, and that is something I find a writing error that detracts a lot from the work. Some of the most apt criticism I’ve heard of the Kimetsu pacing is that it could have stood to give us one of more arc to bond with the characters at least a little more, so we could really, really be emotional over loosing them. We get all our spare Pillar interactions in works outside of canon and after Tanjirou initially gets to know Shinobu, he has no more on-screen interactions with her; she mostly appears in Taisho Secrets. Pillar Training was fun and all, but maybe another arc with stakes in it that occurs closer to home and brings out some different sides of the Pillars in Tanjirou’s presence, instead of each of them getting one dance each with our protagonist. That would had been a chance to show Shinobu and Mitsuri’s friendship, in which case, we would had really, really wanted to see Mitsuri’s reaction. But, Mitsuri had a job to do in the very, very, very heavy tension and battles that ran in weekly magazines for months on end. She carried the very heavy weight of needing to provide brevity. Her silliness contrasted against all that tension was fresh air for readers who had been holding their breath (no pun intended! kinda) through so much. And man, our reliance on her for that made it hurt all the more when things suddenly got very serious for her. But, that means she was also unable to play a heavy emotional role too early on. There wasn’t room to give her a satisfyingly emotional reaction to Shinobu or Tokitou; when after all, this is the girl who was fretting about dearly beloved Oyakata-sama, was horrified to see the explosion, angirly attacked Muzan, but was saved from certain doom almost immediately after she was taken by surprise in the Infinity Fortress, and then she’s BACK TO 100% FANGIRL MODE. Like, giiiiiiiiiirl, Oyakata-sama just diiiiiiied, tone it down a notch. I feel like I had more to say. OH YEAH. WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE?: To fanfic, duh. Going back to reaction and action and producing something with sellable pacing, again, I wouldn’t risk bogging down the tension-heavy final arc with too much open sadness (less is more definitely applies when the reaction scenes were often SO GOOD), but it clearly set up the desire for it. And, the length and intensity with which a work of fiction can live rent-free in audiences’ minds is a measure of its success. If we MUST turn to fanfiction to get that emotional closure (or force the Pillars to get theirs), then this is proof of a job well done in making us care. Herein lies the freedom with fanfiction: It doesn’t have to be good. It doesn’t have to sell. It doesn’t have to fit a regular serialized format. Fanfic is whatever it wants, all it has to do is indulgently scratch an itch. I have way more stomach for sappiness in fanfic than in original canon, because I have higher expectations of canon to honor writing conventions, and to make decisions that will serve the overall story, not necessarily cater to my tastes. But fanfic? Fanfic, you are here to serve me. Dive into those characters’ dry eyes with a jackhammer and gives me their tears. I don’t care how much you have to fry their brains to do it, give it to me. I mean, I don’t write fanfic like that, noooo. At least, not that I post publicly. Ssh. No one needs to know aaaaaall my particular canon itches I wish to have picked raw. But all the more power to people who DO post that publicly and provide a great service to all the other people with that same need. But, in the spirit of writing fic that tries to honor the spirit of canon, I try to sprinkle the juicy emotional potential canon could have had around as needed, to draw out what I feel canon just didn’t have the opportunity to give us. It’s ultimately self-servicing for what I wish canon would had done, but my style of published fic does try to stay widely appealing as a gen fic. Everybody’s got their own balances and tastes, and that’s cool. And that is freedom canon authors don’t have. I’ll conclude by saying that, although we as readers collectively earned it, the ending of Kimetsu no Yaiba was too bright and happy and specifically chose bittersweet moments that would be easy to swallow (pretty smart for a quick ending), but entirely skipped all the really heavy stuff in the immediate aftermath.

And yes, as difficult (and even dull) as it would be to slog through, there’s a part of me that wants to see all that, for the sake of closure.

And now I sleep byyyyezzzzzzzzz

#KnY fandom theories and meta #KnY Spoilers #tw death #KnY nerdery #kimetsu no yaiba #demon slayer

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thedandelion-writer · 3 years

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hii omg congrats on 600!! could i pls request a matchup?

1. any gender is fine but preferably males :)

2. im an ENFP-A and a taurus!

3. im not too good at describing myself, but a lot of my friends say that i act like tanjirou if that helps lol. if anything, im probably the “older sister” friend. uhh im kind of gullible and trust people too easily and am kinda like a free spirit? ig?? like if we were at school i could sit at any lunch table and get along with the people there just fine

4. uhh i really like gardening so my ideal first date would probably be in nature! typical cliche stuff like stargazing or whatever, im really easy to please :,)

5. first date kisses are 100% ok with me i THRIVE off of affection and am so touch starved especially with this pandemic omg </3

6. really my boundaries are pretty simple just dont try to get in my pants and we’re good :,)

7. yes pls lol

if this is too much dont feel obliged to do my matchup!! again, congratulations :)

A/N: Hello!! And thank you for the congrats ^^ Okay, you see, for your matchup I must say I was a little biased. Hear me out, my otp when I was in my kny phase was Tankana, and well- you can say I was influenced by that in your results hehe. Nontheless, I hope you're happy with the outcome!

But without further ado, you're going with...

Ganyu!

My reasons!

I know you said you preferred males, but I just had to match you up with her if you don't mind~ I just think it was too perfect (she can be the Kanao to your Tanjirou <3). Someone caring would be good for her since Ganyu tends to overwork herself, she's a dedicated lady, which is good, but sometimes she needs someone to tell her when to take a break. She's also a little insecure and feels out of place, so if you'd be able to get along with everyone, I'd only assume that you are an accepting person, which is perfect in this case. You don't have to worry about being gullible or trusting around her, Ganyu is honest and wouldn't lie to you. She's a bit shy, so you'll probably have to initiate the affectionate stuff in the beginning. Just because she doesn't ask for it, doesn't mean she doesn't want it (you can tell when she wants to hold hands/hug/etc anyway, I do think she flusters easily). Another one I considered was Xiao, but he didn't really fit too well in some areas so Cocogoat it is :)

The First Date:

It was finally summer, and that meant that the two of you finally had time on your hands

So you decide, what better way to unwind than in nature, and with your favourite person no less (who definitely needs to relax more than you do, she has no excuses this time)

"W-where are we going?" Ganyu held down her wide brimmed sunhat that you bought her recently, since you thought its ribbon matched her hair, while her other hand was on your shoulder to steady herself on the bike.

"You'll see!" You grinned, pedalling a little faster, wind whistling in your ears.

Cycling there had been your idea. It felt refreshing after many months cooped up inside. But since Ganyu was terrible on a bicycle, you just let her sit behind you.

The weather was bright and warm, not yet a sweltering heat that summers were known for. Touches of spring could still be seen and felt here and there, the perfect conditions to go strawberry picking!

"Buying them from the store can't beat right-out-of-the-bush freshness," you said as you locked down your bike to park right outside of the gardens.

The wait in line to buy tickets to get in didn't take long at all, and soon you were taking a sparkly eyed Ganyu into the area where guests were allowed to pick any of the succulent red fruits.

Keen to pick out the best of the bunch, you rolled up your proverbial sleeves and bent to pluck them, rolling them into the small plastic bowl the place provides customers with.

"Is this one any good?" Ganyu, sounding unsure, showed you a perfectly good strawberry to which you nodded your approval.

The two of you weren't afraid to get the slightest bit dirty if it was to get the best looking ones and soon enough, when the sun was higher in the sky and it the heat was starting to get a bit uncomfortable, you brought the now full bowl back to get them weighed, washed and packaged.

"Say aaa~" you singsonged, holding up the plumpest, richest in color amongst them all to her mouth.

You could see a tint of pink on her cheeks when she opened her mouth slowly and bit down gently with a soft "aaa-m."

"How is it?" You prompted.

"It's sweet and sour, perfect for-"

"Smoothies," it was said at the same time.

Your eyes met, heart speeding up seeing her flush upon hearing that, shyly tucking a lock of hair behind her ear and looking downwards.

"Yes, yes, and pies. We'd be able to make a good strawberry pie with it too, or perhaps some jam..." Ganyu rambled, probably to cover up her embarrassment.

You laughed a bit, her adorableness sometimes made you want to cup her cheeks with both hands and smooch her on the forehead.

So that's exactly what you did :D

Tilting the brim of her hat a bit to prevent bumping into it, you pressed a kiss right smack dab in the middle of her eyebrows

Cue Ganyu.exe having a system overload!

"I think we have enough to make all three," you took her hand in yours, whilst she was still semi-paralysed. "We still have a long way to go until sunset, what say you we put these strawberries to good use?"

Just play it cool, play it cool, you kept repeating it in your head. At least one of you needed to not be in a daze to actually ride the bike.

Ganyu nodded at your suggestion, and you breathed a sigh of relief (quietly.)

During the ride back, you noticed she was a lot closer to you than the ride coming here; because you were able to feel her heartbeat on your back that was racing as fast as yours.

#genshin impact #genshin impact x reader #genshin impact imagines #genshin impact matchups #ganyu x reader #ganyu #ganyu genshin impact #ganyu imagines #Lynn's 600

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rx-ven · 4 years

Text

The One That Got Away (Shinobu x Giyuu)

Chapter 4: saved by you, again

-----

12:51 P.M.

After the lunch, Tomioka dropped Shinobu back at the Hospital.

She was greeted by a grinning Mitsuri, sitting on the chair in front of her table when she opened the door of her office.

"So," Mitsuri started, tapping her fingers on the table, "how's the 'family' lunch?"

Shinobu chuckled, obviously know what is on the mind of her pink-haired best friend.

"What are you saying, Mitsuri? It's just a simple lunch that I was offered to."

"Yes!" Mitsuri exclaimed, "Offered by one of the most beautiful men that have entered this hospital."

Shinobu gotta admit Mitsuri isn't wrong on that part.

"You mean I'm offered by his kids, not the other way around."

"Um, no, Ms. Kocho Shinobu. I heard your conversation in the hallway, and I believe he insisted you come with them, and magically, you accepted it," Mitsuri wiggled her brows.

Knowing that her friend won't stop pestering her about the lunch, and she is very sure she will not tell the incident in the comfort room, she tried to change their subject.

"Mitsuri-chan, aren't you supposed to be in your office? It's almost 1:00 P.M."

"Ah, ah," Mitsuri waved her right pointer finger, "you will not get rid of me that fast, Shinobu-chan. Besides, I know something happened! I just know it. I can smell it."

"Well, your nose is obviously clogged because I am certain nothing happened out of ordinary, Mitsuri-chan. And please, stop shipping me to that stoic man. His attention span is like a kid! I can't believe he zoned out while I'm talking to him."

"Maybe he is enchanted by your beauty," teased Mitsuri.

"Y'know, Mitsuri-chan, you're really into this matchmaking of yours, ne?"

"Oh, come on! You're no fun, Shinobu-chan. You don't get to be invited to lunch every day with a handsome man! I need to know what happened," showing her puppy eyes to Shinobu.

Shinobu gave Mitsuri an uninterested look.

"Ugh, fineeeee. I'll stop but only for now," whined Mitsuri, "next time something like this happens you will give me all the tea," Mitsuri winked at Shinobu.

Shinobu rolled her eyes but found herself agreeing to the condition of Mitsuri.

"Yes, I understand, Ms. Kanroji. Now, will you stop pestering me, and get back to your own office?"

"We are not yet done, Shinobu-chan. Douma came."

Shinobu grinned, "I know."

"What? You know?"

"Why do you think I accepted the lunch offer, hm?"

Mitsuri laughed, "you're smart, Shinobu-chan."

"Well, I can hear Douma shouting my name from the other end of the hallway, so I gotta do what I gotta do, escape him even if it means sitting with an emotionally deprived man that zoned out every now and then," Shinobu chuckled.

Shinobu met Douma a couple of months ago when she was strolling in the city. Douma, whose attention is on his phone, dumbly tried to cross a street with cars on full speed. Her automatic reaction was to save him so she yanked him back in the side of the street. Since then, Douma has been pestering her and commenting every now and then how it was like destiny considering the circumstances on how they met.

"I think he was about to ask you on a date."

"Ugh, again? Believe me when I say I turn those advances down every time."

Mitsuri chuckled at the thought, "Well, he is right though. You should start dating now, Shinobu-chan. I'm sure Kanae-san will be happy if that happened."

"I don't like to have another problem in my life, Mitsuri-chan."

"You're really no fun at all, Shinobu-chan," Mitsuri pouted, "speaking of dates, I'll be having a date Saturday next week and I kinda want a movie date but in our apartment. Kanao and Aoi will be staying at Kanae-san's during that time sooo... Is that alright for you?"

"Sure, I'll be just in my room the whole time so you don't have to worry."

"Yay! You're the best, Shinobu-chan!" Mitsuri hugged Shinobu.

"Alright, alright. Now, get back to your office."

The car ride was pleasingly silent. Nezuko was silently scrolling through her phone when a thought came into her.

"Giiyuu-san? Why don't you have a girlfriend?" Nezuko asks innocently. The question made Tomioka flinch. The question also caught Tanjirou's interest.

"Hm, now that you've mentioned it, you haven't introduced someone special to us or even go on dates, Giyuu-san."

Nezuko hummed in agreement. Tomioka kept silent debating if he should answer the two kids. Should he say he the woman he met doesn't interest him or should he just say he doesn't want a relationship yet?

"You know, Giyuu-san, we can help you! Give me your phone, I'll download something," said Tanjirou.

Without thinking, he gave his phone. After a couple of minutes, Tanjirou gave it back to him smiling.

"Here, Giyuu-san. I've installed a dating app on your phone. It should help you in finding the people that interest you by clicking on the filters!"

Bumble app

Tomioka isn't new to this thing. He knows this app because his students use this to find their special someone. Some are successful, some are not. For him, it is efficient, however, it can also be dangerous. He will be meeting a stranger that he only met through the app.

Changing the subject, Tomioka asked Tanjirou where should he drop them. "At the house, Giyuu-san. I'm on a day off today. Inosuke and Zenitsu are the ones working today."

The statement made Tomioka look in horror at Tanjirou.

"Don't worry, Tomioka-san! They won't trash the Café. Kanao and Aoi are there to make sure they won't destroy the Café." Tanjirou said sheepishly.

Aoi and Kanao had been helping in assisting the café a few months ago to help their dear sisters, Shinobu and Kanae pay off bills. Although the earnings of Shinobu already can provide for their everyday needs and still have savings, they still insisted on working and helpful. The idea was adored by Kanae but the money they are only allowed to give is only in a certain amount, and the rest will go to their respective savings.

"Giyuu-san, I know you're trying to change the subject but please try going on dates sometimes, or at least go out," Tanjirou's voice was laced with concern.

Tomioka nodded.

Maybe, just maybe, this can help her find the girl in his dreams.

7:30 P.M.

Mitsuri informed shinobu that she would not be able to go home with her tonight and will be home late. Apparently, Iguro surprised Mitsuri at the hospital and have a date night tonight. Mitsuri apologized at Shinobu knowing she'll be walking home alone tonight. Shinobu assured her that it is alright and that she should just enjoy the evening.

Exiting the hospital, she saw the very least person she needs to be with tonight. Douma.

Ugh, when will the odds be in my favor?

She rolled her eyes.

"Let me walk you home, Shinobu-chan!"

"I don't think that would be needed, Douma-san."

She walked past him and he followed. "But it's late, Shinobu-chan. You might get in danger. I don't want you to be hurt."

Shinobu stopped walking.

"Oh, you don't have to worry about that, Douma-san-" Shinobu rummaged her bag, "-I have a knife and pepper spray with me," Shinobu showed him, "do you want me to try it to you?"

"Aw, don't be mean, Shinobu-chan! I just want to walk you home!" whined Douma.

Shinobu fastened her phase and ignored him, cursing herself because she timely did not bring her car today. Unable to avoid the loud, blonde man. Still, Douma followed her, trying to make her agree to him on going on a date with him.

"Come on, Shinobu-chan! Give me a chance. I'll definitely sweep your feet away," pleaded Douma.

Shinobu glared at him upon hearing his remarks.

"What is it, Shinobu-chan? Why are you glaring at me? Don't tell me you've fallen in love with me already," he said while brushing his hair, voice laced with pride, "I know I'm handsome but don't look at me that long, Shinobu-chan. I'll be shy!"

"No, I'm hoping you'll spontaneously combust," she said smiling.

Clearly hurt, Douma stopped on his tracks and replied, "Why you gotta be so mean to me, Shinobu-chan! We are destined to be together."

Yeah, right, destined to be as far away as possible from each other.

Shinobu continued to walk, ignoring the drama Douma is causing.

While walking, Shinobu is trying to think of ways to get rid of Douma. Douma eventually caught up on her.

She reached the pedestrian crossing when an idea came to her mind. While waiting for the stoplight to be red, Shinobu removed her butterfly pin, and let her hair down. The action surprised douma.

"Whoa, Shinobu-chan! You look so pretty when your hair is down. Why did you do this? Are you hitting on me, ne, Shinobu-chan?" Douma insisted.

Shinobu masked her irritation and just smiled at him, Not answering him. Douma, however, continued to blabber about her hair.

When the stoplight turned red and people started crossing, Shinobu ran as fast as she can away from Douma. Douma was startled and became rooted in his spot, not knowing what was happening.

Shinobu knew that with Douma's height, she will be easily spotted especially with her custom-made butterfly pin so she had to remove it. The plan was a success. She lost Douma in the crowd.

She rearranged her hair and put her pin back. Shinobu skipped on her way home, pleased with the absence of Douma.

While walking, she spots the guardian of the Kamado Siblings who is resting on a bench while holding his water bottle, sweaty from his jog.

Shinobu debated if she should greet him.

If I greet him, he will probably just stare at me again or not even acknowledge me, but if douma catches up on me while I'm alone he will probably start pestering me again.

Shinobu decided to do the latter, deciding that it is the best choice for her current situation.

As she walks closer, the image of Tomioka became clearer. His always messy raven hair is tamed by the ponytail, showing her his forehead. She also took notice of his toned muscles.

He sure does have a nice body.

Mentally slapping herself, Shinobu shook her thoughts off because the man in front of her is obviously confused why she hasn't said a word yet as she stands in front of him staring.

"Good evening, Tomioka-san."

Surprisingly, he acknowledged her, "Kocho."

Tomioka spots a form coming in his way, he lifted his head up and see the small butterfly woman that he had lunch with earlier.

It surprises him when she hasn't said a word to him yet knowing how talkative she is especially when annoying him. His facial expressions must have shown his confusion.

"Good evening, Tomioka-san."

Ah, there it is.

"Kocho."

Utterly confused because she still outside when it is already evening and how it can be dangerous for her.

"What is it that you need, Kocho?"

"Oh, nothing Tomioka-san, I was just about to go home. It just happened that I saw you and decided to greet you,"

"I'll walk you home."

His offer stunned her.

"Umm... What?"

"I'll walk you home."

"Um... why?" then an idea came to her, "are you hitting up on me Tomioka-san? Who would know that you like girls, I thought you were gay," teased Shinobu.

"Girls like you shouldn't be out at a time like this."

Obviously irked by the statement, Shinobu replied, "Excuse me, Tomioka-san, but I'm a 23 years old adult who can definitely protect herself." Fumed Shinobu as she crossed her arms, offended by the comment.

"Yes... but you are small, and light-"

"What are you saying Tomioka-san? Please, do not judge my appearance I can definitely take yo-"

Tomioka grabbed her hips and pulled her close, then grabs her wrist and place it on her back, locking her up.

The action made Shinobu blanked for a second.

Not knowing what to do, she stayed still as she felt her blood rush in her face.

"See, you can easily be cornered."

"What-"

He then let go of her, "I'll walk you home."

Shinobu who still can't wrap up in her head what had just happened, silently followed Tomioka, still blushing furiously.

The walk on their way home was pleasantly silent if it weren't for Shinobu's every other minute teasing or interrogating but Tomioka paid no mind. Having a company is sometimes refreshing.

Surprisingly, her apartment building was just a few blocks away from his.

"Ne, Tomioka-san. Thank you for walking me home," Shinobu said when they got up in front of her unit's door.

Of course, she didn't receive any reply other than his nod.

"Take ca-"

Before she can finish her farewell, her unit's door opened which catches her attention.

She was tackled by Kanao whom she catches at the last minute.

"There you are! We're worried sick! You're not replying to our text and-"

Kanao stopped her rambling when she noticed someone other than her elder sister outside their unit.

"Oh," Kanao straighten herself, "Hello, Tomioka-san. What are you doing here?"

"I walked Kocho home."

Kanao looked at her sister and connected the dots.

"Thank you so much, Tomioka-san! We were worried that something might have happened to her. She's supposed to be home 20 minutes ago-"

"Now, now, Kanao. I'm home safe and sound. You can relax now," Shinobu patted Kanao's head.

Kanao smiled at her sister then faced Tomioka, "Why don't you have dinner with us, Tomioka-san. Take this as a form of gratitude for walking our sister home."

"Thank you, but I don't want to insist."

In Tomioka's mind, he is sweaty and probably smelled, so as much as he wants to have dinner with them, he declined. "We insist, Tomioka-san. Please have dinner with us," Kanao begged.

Shinobu laughed at the cuteness of her little sister she shifted her attention to Tomioka.

"Go freshen up in your apartment first while we prepare for dinner," Shinobu said, sensing Tomioka's thoughts, "Do not try to ditch us Tomioka-san, she will still insist that you'll have dinner with us until you show yourself and eat with us."

With that, Tomioka left and agreed to be back after 10 minutes.

#giyushino #shinobu x giyuu #tomioka x shinobu #kimetsu no yaiba #demon slayer #kny #shinobu kochō #kimetsu no yaiba shinobu #shinobu kochou #giyuu #shinobu #giyuu tomioka #kny giyuu #kny shinobu #tomioka giyuu #fanfiction #kny fanfic #anime

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oreozfox · 4 years

Text

May 19th

A Tankana One-Shot. I thought of this after learning that Kanao likes to press on cats' paw pads. Isn't she adorable? Enjoy and beware of spoilers!

~~~~~~~~~~

Tanjirou glanced at the calendar. As I thought, it’s May 19th! Today’s Kanao’s birthday!

~~~~~~~~~~

Tanjirou had discussed this date with Kanao once before. He had just casually asked her when her birthday was.

“It’s May 19th.” Kanao replied simply. “But it’s probably not the day I was actually born. It was the day Master and Kanae-sama rescued me.” Her eyes darkened sadly at the mention of her dead caretakers.

Tanjirou frowned sadly, but soon a gentle smile returned to his face. “I think that’s really special, Kanao. It might not be the day you were born, but I think it’s perfect.”

Kanao had thanked him with a sad smile, and Tanjirou had quickly promised to remember the date.

~~~~~~~~~~

And now, the day was here! But Tanjirou still had one problem: he couldn’t seem to find the perfect gift for her!

He had picked some pretty flowers to give her, but he gave her flowers often! He needed something a bit more special than that!

Tanjirou thought about some of the things Kanao liked to do. She liked to blow soap bubbles, she liked to buy sweets for the others at the Butterfly Mansion, and she liked to cook. But as hard as he thought, he couldn’t think of a present that had to do with those things. Kanao didn’t need any new kitchen supplies, as far as Tanjirou knew.

After searching the markets with no luck, Tanjirou sat down under a tree, sighing with disappointment. He couldn’t possibly go back empty-handed! He might have gotten up to do another sweep of the market, had a small sound not broken his concentration.

“Meow!”

Tanjirou looked down to see a little orange kitten staring up at him with big brown eyes. Tanjirou smiled and stroked the kitten’s head. The kitten purred and leaned into his touch.

“Hi there, little guy.” Tanjirou said softly. “You’re awfully cute. Kanao would love-” He trailed off, blinking. He suddenly remembered something else Kanao had always wanted!

~~~~~~~~~~~

“I love cats.” Kanao had told him, smiling shyly. “I love everything about them. Their soft fur is pleasant to touch, and I like to squish their paw pads.”

“Aww.” Tanjirou chuckled. “Do you have a cat?”

“No.” Kanao frowned. “Master can’t stand them. She’s afraid of them.”

“That’s too bad.” Tanjirou said. After that, they had moved on to talking about something else, and Tanjirou had forgotten for a while.

~~~~~~~~~~

But Tanjirou felt conflicted. Wouldn’t it be disrespecting Shinobu-san? Well, I don’t think she would mind if it made Kanao happy… But just in case, Tanjirou turned his eyes to the clear blue sky. “I’m sorry, Shinobu-san. I hope this kitty doesn’t scare you up there!” And with that, he got up to make sure the kitten didn’t already have an owner.

After spending a while looking around town, Tanjirou found a young girl, around his age, sitting next to a box of kittens. That must be where the kitten came from!

“Excuse me!” Tanjirou waved as he headed over to the girl. “Did you lose this kitten?”

“Oh, there he is! I was worried he’d been stolen. I’m selling these kittens, you see. Our cat had them, but we don’t have room for all of them!” the girl explained. “Thank you for finding him.” She held out her hands, expecting the kitten to be given to her.

“Um, if you don’t mind, may I buy this kitten?” Tanjirou asked.

The girl smiled. “You took a liking to him, huh?”

Tanjirou grinned back. “That, and today’s the birthday of a girl I know.” His smile became a bit bashful. “I want to get her something special.”

“Oh, so it’s for a girl.” The girl laughed lightly. “Sure, you can buy him.”

“Thank you so much!” Tanjirou said, elated. He paid the girl and waved her goodbye as he started back to the Mansion.

Just as the Butterfly Mansion came into view, the kitten caught sight of a fluttering butterfly and wriggled out of Tanjirou’s arms, running after it.

“H-Hey! Come back here! You’re a present for Kanao, you know!” Tanjirou’s mouth suddenly shut with a click. Oops. I hope she didn’t hear me! I still want to surprise her!

Unfortunately, the kitten had scurried out of sight, so Tanjirou had to rely on his sense of smell. He walked around the Mansion, following the kitten’s scent, until he realized the scent was mingling with another familiar one. Oh, no!

Tanjirou hurried around the corner to see Kanao sitting on the porch, petting the kitten. The kitten was purring, looking quite pleased with himself.

“How’d you get here, little one?” Kanao was cooing at the kitten. Suddenly, she spotted Tanjirou and looked up with a small smile. “I’ve met a new little friend. Isn’t he cute?”

Tanjirou grinned and sat next to her, taking her hand. “Yes, and he’s yours.”

Kanao looked shocked. “What?”

Tanjirou rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. “I bought him in town. Happy Birthday? I hope you don’t mind.”

“Tanjirou…” Kanao glanced down at the kitten, then back at him, her eyes glimmering. Suddenly, she put her arms around him in a tight hug. “Of course I don’t mind. He’s adorable! Thank you so much.”

Tanjirou hugged her back, relieved. “I’m so glad you like him. He seems to like you, too!” he said, pointing at the kitten, who was rubbing his head on Kanao’s leg with contented purrs. “By the way, I also got you these flowers.” He handed the bouqet to her.

“You’re so kind, Tanjirou.” Kanao said. Then, she surprised Tanjirou as she gave him a quick kiss on the cheek before going back to petting the kitten to hide her blushing face.

Tanjirou was blushing as well as he lightly touched the place she’d kissed him with his hand. He felt Kanao squeeze his hand briefly as she placed the kitten on her lap. Tanjirou smiled fondly at her. Happy Birthday, Kanao.

#kny #my post #my writing #tankana #tanjiro x kanao #kimetsu no yaiba #demon slayer #one shot #fluff

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kny-secret-santa2019 · 4 years

Text

from: @nezukobestneko

to: @cierrasl

here’s the shinogiyuu oneshot! i actually haven’t tried eggnog before, and thought it was egg coffee (a popular drink where i live) halfway through writing :’) but all in all, this was such an enjoyable prompt to write for, and i hope you enjoy! happy holidays :)

“Just drink it.”

Giyuu stared down at the thick, creamy lava that climbed up the sides of his mug, leaving a round stain the color of a newborn chicken that hovered just beneath the mouth. Bubbles sunk into the surface of the liquid, where flecks of brown clustered. “Weird texture,” he summed up.

“It’s eggnog,” Kochou picked up the spoon in her own mug and stirred. “Egg whites with cream and milk. Don’t tell me you don’t know what an egg is. You know what an egg is, right, Tomioka-san?”

He tilted his head to the side, ignoring the smug glow on her face. “You sure that’s all that’s in it? It looks like there’s—”

“I know what I put in. I haven’t ran this coffee shop more than three years for nothing, alright?” She put her mug to her mouth. “So just drink it.”

“Is it alcohol again? God knows I’ve sworn that off since last year. I mean, don’t you think it was a bit much that the entire swim club started their routines with ‘Tomioka drunk-diving’ for three months straight?”

Kochou giggled in gulps, careful to swallow the rest of her drink without choking. “You have to admit, it was funny. The fact that you couldn’t smell it in the coffee, too! I bet I still have that video of you squirming like a dying starfish in the water.”

“So that’s what it—ah!” Tanjirou, the mane of his red hair peeking out from the next table, exclaimed. “I asked Uzui-san why we had to flail our arms and twitch our legs like that, but he just said it was a flamboyant signature move. Sanemi-san called it a different word, though… dumbass, I think.”

“But there’s none of that in this drink, of course.” Kochou smiled her tight-lipped smile. Knowing her…

“What about other things? Like those… those laxatives from two years back?”

“I said, there’s egg white, cream, and milk.” Still with that smile on her face, she banged the mug on the table with each word. Her audible slurping filled the silence that had settled between them.

Giyuu’s eyes found themselves on his drink again. “That doesn’t sound too complicated; well, to you. Can’t you teach me to make my own?”

“No offense, Tomioka-san, but as much grace and elegance as you have under the water, you probably can’t boil a pot of it on land. It would take at least a good few days to teach you to make eggnog. And, to be frank,” she waved a dismissive hand, “that’s too much time to be spending with someone like you.”

Tanjirou’s head popped up from behind, an arm slung over Giyuu’s drooping shoulder. “Did you hear that? Shinobu-san complimented your swimming! She said it was graceful and elegant!”

“Shush, Tanjirou.” Veins across Kochou’s forehead bulged out like Iguro’s white devil of a snake. “Besides, I’m already spending too much time with you as it is. After all, who would waste a whole evening on a guy no one likes?”

“I am not disliked by people,” Giyuu muttered, at the same time as Tanjirou protested, “I would spend a whole evening with Giyuu-san!”

“I’m not talking to you, Tanjirou,” she snapped. “You know what,” she swiveled her head back towards Giyuu, all smiles again, “if you’re so afraid of drinking the eggnog, I’ll have Kanao test it out for you. Just to show you I haven’t, like, poisoned it or anything. Kanao?”

The girl, her round tray tipping down to serve some six or seven drinks, perked up at the sound of her name. “Coming, nee-san,” she called out from several tables away.

Was that genuine surprise? Or did those two plan this out together beforehand?

“What did you call me for?” Kanao held her arms together on the stripes of her plaid skirt, her fingers interlaced.

Kochou jabbed the handle of Giyuu’s mug with the edge of her nails. “Could you drink this and tell Tomioka-san how it tastes? He hasn’t tried eggnog before.”

“Oh-okay.” Kanao stirred the mug once, twice, before putting the spoon to her lips. Nothing seems to have been added in the process.

“It’s good as always, nee-san.” Her words barely rose above a whisper, confined by her tight smile. “Um… how do I say…it’s creamy and milky, but not… not eggy.” The outermost pleat of her skirt was all that remained in sight by the time she finished her sentence.

“There you go,” Kochou stretched her arms across the table, her mug already drained and pushed aside. Her head bobbed back and forth. “Want some cinnamon to go with it?”

She left before you could see a reaction. But surely Kochou wouldn’t poison her own sister?

“You want cinnamon or not?” she repeated, jerking him back from his train of thought.

He blinked. “Like, the swirly things? Cinnamon rolls?”

“Nevermind,” she put a palm to her face; over at the next table, Tanjirou tilted his head up, asking “Did someone call me?”

Giyuu pushed the mug into his arms, hugging his hands around the smooth curve of the glass. A warmth that seemed to emanate from the very core of the drink prickled his fingertips. It felt… nice.

“Just drink it.”

And he did—he hovered the mug just above his lips, letting the eggnog flow down in a river of spongy gelato. An explosion of sweetness, like melted ice cream and vanilla milkshake and hints of spicy nutmeg all whisked into one, condensed along the length of his tongue. With each gulp, a buzz of warmth ran down his spine and filled his stomach. Kochou was one hell of a brewer, but it was only now that he truly appreciated her talent.

She drummed her fingers on the table. “I told you it’s good, isn’t it?” Her face was flushed the color of bricks. Is it that hot if you drink it from the start? Or is there something in my cup that’s making me see things?

“Stay here and keep on drinking, then. I have to go,” her words sloshed together. “It took way too much time just getting you to drink one drink, so I have to go.” She pushed her chair back in a swaying motion, tilting precariously to the right as she turned to leave.

What’s up with her?

Tanjirou, who appeared to have been watching this whole time, nudged Giyuu on the head. “There are two mugs on the table she could have spiked, Tomioka-san.”

Does that mean… “Why would she—” Giyuu snatched the empty mug that laid across the table. It reeked of rum.

“Buh-bye, Tomioka-san! No, Tapioca-san!” Kochou giggled at her own (very lame) joke. She took a shaky step, her heels still hovering above the ground, and smacked squarely into a row of benches.

Before he was even aware, his body had leapt up from his seat, from his table, and pitched itself forward. For that brief moment, his feet were midair; the coffee shop around him blurred into the lush purple that flecked Kochou’s hair. He landed in her arms. No, her arms were wrapped around his, which were wrapped around her body. His nails clung to the back of her shirt, his grip firm without digging deep in fear of hurting her.

“So you can dive for something that’s not the water.” For the first time, Giyuu felt like ‘soft’ was an apt description of the way she gazed at him. And her rose-colored cheeks, pulled up into a smile, didn’t have the tension of a thread painting holding itself together when his fingers brushed through them.

Footsteps had assembled around him. “Wow, Tomioka-san, that was so,” Kanroji drew out the syllable, her long braids brushing against the side of his head, “romantic! Shinobu-chan is so lucky to have someone as fast and caring as you!” Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Iguro giving him a look that stank of what that devil of a snake does at its prey.

Wait, romantic?

“You caught it all?” Uzui nudged Kanao, almost making the poor girl drop her phone. “Not quite as flamboyant as the drunk diving, but still good to watch in the future.”

“With that, let’s get the party started!” Rengoku announced, his glass raised. Sanemi grumbled in agreement, as if he couldn’t get away fast enough.

They left without Giyuu; they always did, anyway. Kochou had fallen fast asleep in his arms, her chest rising and falling in time with the constant hiss of the coffee machine brewing in the background. That smile she had earlier stayed. So that then wasn’t an act; she didn’t have anything else hidden.

It was just like Kochou, too, to go through all of that just for him to hold her. If it was that simple, why didn’t she just ask that from the beginning?

“That’s quite the flamboyant party you’re planning,” Uzui slid the rum bottle along the table. “You’re sure you can handle all of this?” He eyed the petite Shinobu from a chair away.

She huffed, but dulled it with a smile. “I know my limits; I’ll be fine. And tell everyone to start without me. I have… other things to tend to beforehand.”

“Still at your place, right?” His teeth flashed brighter at the sight of her nod. “Alright then, we’ll see you around. If Iguro and Mitsuri don’t go off on their own romantic Christmas getaway, that is.” The chains on his hand jingled as he waved. “Good luck with your party planning!”

She sneaked another glance at her phone, at the early invitation she sent Tomioka. Still left on ‘read’. Thanks, Uzui-san; I’ll need it.

—

She spent hours perfecting the new eggnog recipe down to the last drop of milk and hopping around like a bunny to sprinkle in decorations from multiple angles. The handles on the clock above her station spun around too many times, trudging on from 1 pm to 2 to 5.

She popped the rum bottle right as the door creaked open. “Nee-san, may I…” The familiar tones of her younger sister’s voice began.

“Hm?” Shinobu had to redirect her ears from the bubbling mix of creamy goodness, fresh from the pan. “Could you repeat that, Kanao?”

“I was just wondering… um… if you could make a… make a special drink?” The girl’s wide eyes blinked at her feet.

“Don’t you see I’m busy right now?” Shinobu poured the rum about three quarters of the way, then topped her mug to the brim with the mix in a sweeping motion. “You should be able to brew most of the drink on your own, and I’ll help when I’m done.”

Kanao swung the door open. “I’ll wait outside—oops! Tanjirou? Are you okay, Tanjirou?”

“I’m fine!” The boy laughed good-naturedly, brushing off the non-existent door mark on his forehead of steel. “Did you ask Shinobu-san yet? Oh, and Shinobu-san,” his shoes squeaked onto the kitchen floor tiles, “Giyuu-san is looking for you. He says you have a da—er, meeting—together.”

“Tell him he can wait.” The eggnog just settled in the second cup. Shinobu gave it another good stir, just to add even more foam to the texture.

Tanjirou walked closer towards her, his face scrunched up. “Is that… rum I smell? Are you giving Giyuu-san a spiked drink?” His voice rose in muted terror.

Her muscles tensed up into a smile. Deep breath in, deep breath out. “You can’t say a word to him, okay?”

—

Why won’t he just? Drink? It? Can’t he appreciate the beauty that had gone into this eggnog? The hand-whipped cream and steamy eggs and nutmeg sprinkles spiralling into a wave shape? And with that shell-shocked dunce face, too. Okay, maybe I did spike his drinks once, or twice, and let him make an absolute fool of himself. But he generally does anyways; I simply made it more entertaining.

“But there’s none of that in this drink, of course.” Can’t he just take a hint already?

Rum tastes like burnt sugar. I shouldn’t have sipped that much in one go.

If it wasn’t enough dealing with the complete idiot in front of my face and the scorching desert in my throat, now Tanjirou has to chime in too. Really starting to wish Kanao didn’t lead him into the kitchen…

“…I’ll have Kanao test it out for you. Just to show you I haven’t, like, poisoned it or anything. Kanao?” What did I just—is this even part of the plan? There’s this fog hanging over my head and it hurts like hell and oh well I’ll have to roll with this then.

…And that got him. Huh.

I’d already downed the rest of the rum; now every vein in my body is buzzing. I can’t sit still. Especially if he’s going to take his sweet time like this. Is it time for the group party already?

Getting up from the chair, walking towards the big table, even crashing into the benches: it was all a haze, with coffee machine sounds and voices chattering and wooden floor glitching in and out. I just know I’m falling, somehow. And I’ll crash to the ground and this would have all been for nothing.

He caught her.

Tomioka may not be able to follow her plans exactly, but he got there in the end.

#shinobu kochou #shinobu x giyuu #shinogiyuu #giyuushino #giyuu x shinobu #kny scenarios #kimetsu no yaiba #demon slayer #submission

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nezuko-writes · 5 years

Note

Hi im back for another Rengoku request. S/o found out that she's pregnant and she was so scared because she thought Rengoku is going to leave due being a pillar and all that, but also because she doesn't want to be a burden to him. So she tries to avoid him at all cost. Bonus if s/o and mitsuri are bffs and she accidentally spilled s/o's secret to a pillar dinner thing. Thank you!

Sorry for the wait! I really wanted to build up my requests so I can post them all at once but my ask box Is looking really dry haha

Kyoguro Rengoku

Kyoguro never hinted a dislike towards kids, but he never hinted a want towards them either.

He was always an "in the moment" person and you honestly couldn't see him being upset about it. But you did picture him being slowed down or worse, retiring as a pillar early because of a child.

Which you absolutely did not want to happen. Though, you always wanted kids, you were waiting on your partner to give you some type of que to try for a child.

Did he want to be a father? Were you even ready to become a mother? .

Questions like these flooded your mind and the only person you could truly trust and confine in was the love pillar, Mitsuri Kanroji.

The girls had been much better at detecting your change in routine and picked up teeny weeny habits that matched those of a pregnant woman.

Shinobu had been the first to notice your more frequent trips to the bathroom, and your lack or increase of appetite.

And Mitsuri had some type of special sense where she just knew someone was with child no matter how far or how early into the pregnancy.

On special occasions, the master would host dinners for the pillars and their significant others after pillar meetings, this afternoon you had made an excuse to Kyoguro and went out to the nearest city to buy something important.

And despite being a little upset about showing up without you clinging to his arm, he trusts you with all his heart and understood.

Mitsuri was always so excited when it came to special dinners, she was very talkative and brought light and love to almost any event.

On the other side of the table, Tengen had invited all three of his wives, they had been kindly chatting away.

Tengen sweetly hushed his wives as he questioned Kyoguro about your whereabouts.

"Oh! She went out to buy something very important!"

Mitsuri, overly excited, had jumped out of her seat and gasped rather loudly.

"I bet shes out buying baby clothes!"

Kyoguro had frozen in place, smile still plastered to his face as the fork in his hand clashed against his porcelain plate.

"Excuse me, what did you say?"

Kyoguro couldn't process this information and Shinobu made it her mission to get Kyoguro out of the room.

"Rengoku-san and I need to get some fresh air. But do continue without us"

The atmosphere had thickened in the room after they noticed the surprised look on Kyoguro's face, it was suffocating, almost unbearable for Mitsuri as she felt quite guilty.

Shinobu had walked Kyoguro back to his home, he had asked her about your situation and Shinobu felt that he deserved to know the truth more then anyone else.

"I think she was planning to run away tonight. I wasnt completely sure so I had Kanao watch over her"

Kyoguro's smile had dropped, desperate to hear the rest of what the insect pillar had to say.

"However, S/o is a former pillar, so Kanao wont be much of a challenge for her if Kanao gets caught"

Kyoguro was distorted. His wife, his baby. Both gone. What was he supposed to do? You could have been miles away by now. You left early hours in the morning and the sun was just about to set. Was he being naive for trusting you so deeply.

Maybe Tanjirou could track you down by scent? Or he could ask a few pillars to help search for you?, but your specialty was camouflage and tracking, you were the best at concealing your presence, you hide very well and you could tell if someone was around wither they were a threat or not.

Everything felt like it was falling apart. Kyoguro hated feeling as hopeless as he did. It saddened him but he promised himself, as well as his younger brother to stay strong for the both of them. And that's exactly what he did.

"That's not a problem! I'll bring her home right now!"

•• ━━━━━ ••●•• ━━━━━ ••

#demon slayer #demon slayer x reader #kyoguro #kyoguro Rengoku #x reader

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rubylarkspur22 · 3 months

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Questions and answers below the cut.

1: (🌸) To the Rengoku family, Mitsuri, Obanai, and Kaburamaru; How would you react to the Nezuko, Inosuke, and Zenitsu landing in prison.

Kyojurou: Were they simply caught with their swords out in public, or was it something worse?

Mitsuri: Oh, dear! What happened?! Do they need help?!

Shinjurou: Okay. First of all, what did they do? Second of all, where are they? Because I feel like Kamado is gonna bite a chunk out of someone if she's locked up for too long, given her track record.

Senjurou: ... Oh, no.

Obanai: I'd probably get them out. If only so no one loses limbs. It's for the civilian prisoners' safety, above all else, because Kamado alone is likely to kill someone if they tick her off.

Kaburamaru: *hissing in agreement with Obanai*

2: (🌸) To Tanjirou, Genya, Aoi, Muichirou, and Kanao, same question as #1.

Tanjirou: HM?! *distressed demon brother noises*

Aoi: Oh, dear. Can someone please calm Tanjirou down, before he breaks something?! And to answer your question, I'm gonna be wrangling Nezuko's brother so he doesn't burn down the mansion while panicking! This is why we don't ask questions or propose hypotheticals that suggest Nezuko's in danger!

Kanao: I suppose the best course of action would be to get them out. And also assuring Tanjirou that Nezuko's okay...

Genya: How angry was Nezuko? Because that's gonna affect my urgency, after seeing what she did to Upper Four in the Swordsmith Village.

Muichirou: I trust Nezuko can get herself, and her friends, out. If not, then Rengoku needs to train her better.

3: (🔄) Hantengu, how do you feel about the Kamado siblings?

Oh, that demon boy is terrifying. Terrifying! Why a Slayer would let a demon live is both bizarre and terrifying! But, I suppose it's only right to trust Hashira Tsugikuni's judgement.

4: (🔄) Kanae, what is your relationship with Urokodaki, Makomo, and Sabito, and vice versa?

Kanae: Well, after I broke free from Ubuyashiki, I had to seek sanctuary to survive. It took time, but I managed to find Urokodaki. It took some convincing to assure him I wasn't looking for him for Kagaya, but he eventually let me stay. I've been working to help, and earn my place, using my parents' pharmaceutical expertise to help patients. Makomo and I became close rather quickly, but Sabito needed to have some time to trust me. But they're both very sweet!

Urokodaki: Kanae was certainly a shock, but she's also been quite helpful. Both for information, and medical assistance. She's a hard worker, and a kind soul, now that she's free.

Sabito: She's alright, now that we know she's not an agent of Ubuyashiki. Though, she sometimes forgets to mind personal space, and can be excessive in her affection at times. I don't know what causes it.

Makomo: She's lovely. We make flower crowns together, and she's like a big sister!

5: (🎀) To Shizu and Kotoha, are you both aware that you have a squad of feral protective children now? If so, how do you feel about it?

Kotoha: I'm quite aware, yes. I think Kaigaku still has the scar from when Ume bit him after I got beat up for protecting Gyutaro. And Inosuke can also be quite protective, whenever he's nearby. I'm just happy to finally have a family I know I can trust, after everything that's happened.

Shizu: I... didn't know, honestly. I've just been focused on trying to make things up to Sanemi, I think I've not been paying much attention otherwise, outside of work. But hearing that reminds me of Sanemi and Genya. My sweet boys, always trying to stand up to their fa... to him. I hope I can return the favour.

6: (🎀) To the Kamado siblings, what are your Blood Demon Arts, and your thoughts one your fellow Upper Moons as well as Muzan?

Well, my Blood Demon Art is Exploding Blood. I can ignite my blood at will, and I've learned to completely control it and create different fires with different effects over the last several decades.

Mine is a set of spine tendrils. And sometimes, when Nezuko and I synchronize properly, I can launch a fire attack of my own.

As for our feelings about the others, and Lord Muzan?

Upper One is really mysterious, and a little scary. And... Something about him is familiar, but thinking about it too much gives me a headache.

He reminds me of... of someone who's long gone, even before we were demons. Hate Douma?

Hate Douma.

Akaza's nice, in a way. I wish he'd let me challenge him, though.

Maybe one day!

Also not fond of Hantengu. Can't believe he's Upper Four, with how much of a coward he is.

Yeah. All I can pick up is fear from him.

Gyokko and I talk about our art sometimes. Actual art, not his art made from corpses.

He smells like blood and rotting fish, and I don't like it. My nose stings just thinking about it. Lord Muzan has been good to us. He treats us well, and lets us share a rank.

*covers Tanjirou's ears* Between you and me, Lord Muzan and I have a mutual "Go f*** yourself" mentality towards each other. But it never leaves the mind reading. He knows acting out against me gets him in trouble with my brother, and I know he'll hurt either me or Tan... my brother if I act out. So we both behave ourselves for his sake.

7: (💕) To Tanjurou, how did you adopt Kanao and Zenitsu?

Oh, Kie and I weren't the ones to adopt Kanao and Zenitsu. They're close to our kids, and have helped us many times. It's appreciated, and I hope to pay them back somehow.

8: (💕) To Inosuke and Kanao, what is your relationship and how do you feel about each other?

Well, Inosuke is a great medic and trainer. And he's also a really good friend. Plus, it's fun to watch him mess with Aoi from time to time, and she doesn't seem to mind it either.

Kanao's a good Slayer. And she's been reminding me that, even though I had to resign from actually slaying demons, I'm still doing my part. And I've seen the affect she's had on Tanjirou since her first stay. Whatever happened before she left for the Mugen Train left a big impression on him. She's doing some good things, and I hope she keeps doing it.

#demon slayer #kny au #character q&a #🌸#🔄#🎀#💕

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blxssom-tanjiro · 5 years

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Could you write a Tanjirou x reader, where the reader has trouble expressing their emotions. They finally open up and have an emotional break down when they are alone but tanjirou overhears. The next day s/o grabs tanjirous sleeve and pulls them into an area to be alone. They stare up at him with tear brimming eyes and ask ‘Can I kiss you?..’ it could be slight angst, but ends in a positive note :)

Hello! Thank you for requesting this cute scenario! I love writing angst and sad stuff mostly, so seeing slight angst in this makes me so happy!

I didn’t know if you wanted them to be together before or get together at the end, so I wrote it that they’re both crushing on each other!

Work is slow right now so I’m typing this as I’m waiting for customers to come in.

-blxssom

~~~~

It all started when Tanjiro first met the mysterious person named (y/n) showed up at the Butterfly Estate. They were well known around the pillars, Shinobu happily greeting the person as they were put to bed for their injuries.

Tanjiro couldn’t help but feel curious and interested in this quiet person, seeing them gravitate towards Shinobu and Kanao throughout the day. Then, one day, he found himself rushing Zenitsu away from them, profusely apologizing for Zenitsu’s advances, but they seemingly nodded and said it was alright.

That’s when he got the first scent.

It seemed as though (y/n) was hiding something away from them, locking it in their own heart and throwing away the key into a large vast ocean of deep thought. Tanjiro ignored it at first, but the smell began to get stronger every single time he was close to them. He could tell that (y/n) was holding something back, something that no one should hold back on their own accord.

Tanjiro knew it wasn’t his place to say anything, but felt his face contort to a soft, pitiful smile whenever he looked their way.

He could tell that (y/n) was lost, like a voyager who lost their way in the deepest part of the ocean. They were floating aimlessly, and he wanted to be the stars to navigate them at night. Whether it was silently leaving food for them after training, checking up of them every once and a while, or simply saying “hello”.

One night, Tanjiro found himself wandering through the halls, unable to sleep through the night. Nightmares rang through his brain, so he decided that a nice walk would help.

This was when he wandered upon (y/n).

Soft cries were heard outside of the Butterfly Estate, Tanjiro peeking around the corner to see what was happening. His eyes widened ever so slightly as he saw (y/n) kneeling on the ground, clutching at their Haori as tears spilled on to the concrete. Tanjiro could smell the immense amount of despair and emotions running through the air like oxygen, clutching his chest tightly. He continued to watch them as their cries rang out through the air, but he also witnessed something else.

“I can’t believe I can’t even talk to the boy,” (y/n) mumbled to themselves, clutching their Haori as they sat,” Everyday, he’s here, mending for his next mission. I’m stuck here until I’m better, but I don’t want to see him go just yet. I have to tell him how I feel, or else it’ll be too late. Get ahold of yourself, (y/n)!” Tanjiro winced was they slapped their cheeks hard, tears continuing to fall,” I can’t stay moving around! It’s hard for me, but...but I have to do this!” Watching them stand up, Tanjiro quickly blended into the shadows, his presence going unnoticed by the teary eyes (y/n).

“Why am I the way I am?” He heard them question themselves as they stop, their Haori flowing in the soft wind of night,” why do I feel so...so alone?” Tanjiro bit his lip lightly, trying not to make a noise as (y/n) retreated back to their room. Hearing the door close shut, he let out a breath, clutching his own hands lightly.

(Y/n)...feels this way about someone? Tanjiro couldn’t help but wonder, feeling his heartbeat increase. Of course, there was a slight chance it could be him, but the male had no idea as to why he was feeling this way.

His heart beat increased tenfolds, his hands suddenly getting clammy and hard to clutch together. He felt a blush slowly reach his features, but he pushed it down.

He didn’t know that (y/n) was hiding these emotions for such a time, seeing the mysterious person break down in an emotional mess when no one was looking.

He wanted to help them, bring them back to a happy and emotional filled life. He wants to see them smile as they continue to do what’s good for the world.

But he will just have to wait until they figure out how to do it themselves, rather than forcing them.

The next day, however, Tanjiro felt his eyes wander on to (y/n)’s form. They were sitting alone in the morning, no one necessarily up yet besides the two. Tanjiro connected eyes with them before smiling lightly, walking over. Images of them crying flashed through his mind as he sat down next to them, watching the sun rise together.

“Tanjiro,” they began to speak, their voice weary,” I can sense something is wrong. I knew you saw me at my worst yesterday,” their eyes were looking around, not staring at Tanjiro because of their embarrassment,” and I apologize you had to witness that.”

“No one should have to hide their feelings like that, (y/n),” Tanjiro began to talk, his eyes grazing across (y/n)’s face,” even if it feels as though you don’t want to burden anyone with something you feel, you should always open up. We care for you, and so does your family. They’re always around, smiling at you as you continue on,” he thought of his own family, a small smile on his lips,” tell the male you want to be with. I’m sure he would love to be by your side like you want him on yours,” he was speaking from his heart at this moment, silently spilling his own feelings. Even if he was young, he knew what feelings he had for the person soon as he saw their weakest moment.

He wanted to be with them through it all and pick them back up once more.

He watched as (y/n) turned to him, their eyes teary with a small smile,” really, you think so?”

“ I know so.”

“Tanjiro...Can I kiss you?”

#kny scenarios #kny x reader #tanjirou x reader #blxssom

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heyiwrotesomethings · 4 years

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Among Us

Shinobu Kochou x Fem Reader

Also Featuring: Giyuu, Obanai, Mitsuri, Nezuko, Tanjirou, Kanao, Zenitsu, and Inosuke.

A/N: Y’all already know what it is. Enjoy this modern, kinda crack, fic.

“Start!” Inosuke screamed in everyone’s ears the second the lobby was filled. “Inosuke, you don’t need to yell!” Tanjirou winced. “I said start! Who’s running this thing? Let’s go! I wanna crush all of you!” Inosuke’s voice boomed over the discord server, his character moving erratically about the lobby space. “Inosuke, just hold on a second. I’m adjusting the settings!” (Y/n) tried to explain over the boy’s howls.

“Oh, hey, guys? Is it okay if I stream this?” Mitsuri asked. “My subscribers have been begging to see me play,” “I don’t have a problem with it,” (Y/n) shrugged, “What does everyone else think? Speak now or forever hold your regret,” A bunch of muddled voices resounded through (Y/n) headphones and she listened hard to pick up any objections. “Sounds like You’re good to go Mitsuri,” “Thanks guys!” “Start! Start! Start!” Inosuke chanted. “Oh my god,” (Y/n) groaned, “Okay, I hope they get you first,” she muttered as she clicked the start button. “What?!” The screen fades, (Y/n) sighs, relieved that she’s a crewmate this round. Imposter is much too stressful. “Oooo I’m so excited!” Mitsuri’s voice broke through as the game began. “Mitsuri, mute,” Shinobu and Obanai gently reminded her before re-muting themselves. “Eep! Sorry!” Mitsuri replied before all was silent. (Y/n) opened her map and decided she’d work right to left for now. She made her way to weapons and saw Nezuko’s little brown bean with bear ears shooting asteroids while Tanjirou and Zenitsu watched. (Y/n) made a mental note of it and continued to navigation for her download and spaceship task. She walked into the empty room and began her download. As the download neared its completion, (Y/n) prayed no meeting would be called before the final file was retrieved, lest she have to do it all over again. When the screen closed, (Y/n) jumped in her seat when she saw Shinobu’s little purple character hovering over hers. “Are you downloading Shinobu, or are you being nefarious?” (Y/n) muttered to herself. She eyed Shinobu suspiciously before moving to complete her spaceship task. When she finished that, Shinobu had moved to stand directly in front of her, the helmets of their little avatars meeting in a kiss. “Nope nope nope, stop that,” (Y/n) moved to get the hell out of nav but before she could, a body had been reported. “I found Inosuke’s body in electrical,” Giyuu spoke. “Zenitsu has been following me everywhere!” Tanjirou shared, “It’s very unsettling.” “It’s because I’m scared, Tanjirou!” Zenitsu cried. “Where is everyone what do we know?” Obanai asked. “I’m in reactor doing the pattern game!” Mitsuri shared. “Zenitsu, Nezuko, and I ended in admin.” Tanjirou supplied. “I was in nav with (Y/n).” Shinobu’s calming voice shined through. “That’s true,” (Y/n) affirmed, “I also saw Nezuko do asteroids so she’s clear. Kanao, where were you?” “Med bay,” came the quiet and precise reply. “Obanai, where were you?” Giyuu asked. “I was in storage filling my gas can,” he replied, coolly. “That’s close to electrical,” Giyuu noted. “Are you accusing me, Tomioka?” “Just making an observation,” “I think Tomioka self reported,” Shinobu sing-songed as she submitted her vote. “Ooo, defense Tomioka-san?” Mitsuri asked. “...I didn’t do it.” “I’ve heard all I needed to hear,” Obanai deadpanned while submitting a vote for Giyuu. “Okay, but I think we should hold off a round, we don’t have a lot to go off on. We should skip,” Tanjirou reasoned. “Just keep an eye on Giyuu. Maybe Kanao too, she could have vented to med bay from electrical,” “I agree!” Mitsuri voiced along with (Y/n) and a hum from Nezuko. The votes were cast with moments to spare. Three votes against Giyuu and the rest were skips. “Zenitsu, why did you vote for Giyuu?” Tanjirou asked. “He’s suspicious and I don’t want to die!” The game faded back in and (Y/n) decided to go to admin to card swipe and finish her upload. Shinobu followed close behind, along with Tanjirou and Zenitsu. (Y/n) began her upload, feeling relatively safe with three other people in the room. By the time she was done, Obanai had joined them as well. Though he appeared to be looking at the admin table rather than continuing his tasks. (Y/n) let him be and went to the card swipe, quickly completing the task before moving on. She followed Tanjirou and Zenitsu to storage and completed a set of wires while the green and yellow characters continued downward towards the right side. When she came out of the task, the lights were out. She moved as fast as her character’s stubby little legs would allow and found Mitsuri already fixing the lights. Soon, light flooded the map once more and (Y/n) checked the upper area and was shocked to find Giyuu standing over a black halved corpse, Obanai. She quickly reported with Mitsuri right behind her. “Nezukoooooo!” Zenitsu and Tanjirou yelled in unison. “Who killed my baby sister!” Tanjirou cried. “Oh dear,” came Shinobu’s sympathetic voice, “she was the only cleared one out of all of us,” “Guys, I’m sad too, but listen to what Mitsuri and I saw!” (Y/n) said, trying to talk over the rowdy boys’ wails. “What did you see, love?” Shinobu’s melodic voice sent shivers down (Y/n)’s spine, but she quickly recovered. “Giyuu was standing over Obanai’s body in electrical,” “He was!” Mitsuri confirmed, “My poor snake-y boi!” “I didn’t see him,” Giyuu claimed. “How could you not have seen him? You were literally standing on his body,” (Y/n) rose her arms in disbelief. “I was doing a task. The spinning circle thing,” he explained monotonously. “I know you’re incompetent Tomioka, but even you can’t be that clueless,” Shinobu chided. “Let’s not forget Obanai accused him of killing Inosuke last round,” “She’s right, I think we need to vote you out, sorry Giyuu,” Tanjirou called mournfully. “...But you don’t vote on seven.” Giyuu replied, seemingly emotionless. “When you know, you know. Sorry Giyuu,” (Y/n) voted, soon followed by the others. “But I have trash,” “Just vote, Tomioka,” Shinobu ordered with a mocking sweetness. A unanimous vote, besides Giyuu who skipped, sent the blue bean spinning into space. “Oh shiiiit,” (Y/n) groaned, as the white text appeared on screen. Giyuu was not an imposter. “A double kill and it’s all over.” As soon as the game resumed, the reactor went off. (Y/n) followed after everyone, counting the seconds until inevitable death. Shinobu and Zenitsu went top reactor so (Y/n) went to lower. There she found Kanao and Tanjirou who had originally headed the pack. “What?!” (Y/n) yelled, not caring if Shinobu could hear her from the living room, because Kanao’s white character with its cute little flower atop its head, just sliced Tanjirou up right in front of her. “I can’t believe I hit the report button before there was a double kill!” (Y/n) spoke quickly, “Kanao, sweet baby Kanao, killed sunshine boy Tanjirou in front of my very own eyes!” “Tanjirooooouuuu!” Zenitsu cried. “Kanao, is that true?” Shinobu asked. “...Yes,” Kanao answered after a short pause. “I have always appreciated your honesty, but you are allowed to lie in this game, Kanao,” “Okay, Nee-san” Kanao replied. “...I didn’t do it,” “It’s a little late for that now, but keep it in mind for the future.” “So wait, we’re voting off Kanao?” Mitsuri asked. “If (Y/n) is to be believed, then yes,” Shinobu replied. “What do you mean ‘if I’m to be believed?’” (Y/n) asked feeling a bit hurt, “I honestly saw her do it,” “You also played a major part in Tomioka getting booted off the ship. In fact, I’d say you and Mitsuri are quite suspicious,” “Hey!” Mitsuri whined, “How am I suspicious?” “You never showed up to reactor,” Shinobu explained, “You left your fellow imposter hanging. I assume (Y/n) only killed Tanjirou because she expected you to attack as well,” “I- I meant to help at reactor, really, but I got distracted by another arrow and went the wrong way!” Mitsuri sputtered. “I don’t know what to believe!” Zenitsu screamed. “Zenitsu, Shinobu, listen to me. I swear it’s Kanao, she admitted to it, remember?” (Y/n) couldn’t believe they were still debating this at all. “I believe (Y/n)!” Mitsuri declared and then promptly voted. “Well, we do need to vote... I suppose I’ll believe you (Y/n). After all, you could have killed me back in nav at the beginning of the game,” Shinobu decided. “Did you come up with that theory before just to spite me or what?” (Y/n) felt her eye twitch as her girlfriend’s melodic laughter rang through her ears. “Perhaps,” Shinobu teased, “I really do have my doubts about Mitsuri though.” “Shinobuuuu, don’t be mean!” (Y/n) could practically hear the pout in Mitsuri’s tone. The votes were soon counted. Everyone had voted for Kanao, including the quiet girl herself, and she was sent into space. The white text confirming that she was indeed an imposter. There were only four of them now, (Y/n), Shinobu, Zenitsu, and Mitsuri. (Y/n) cursed as she glanced at the task bar. It was barely half filled. “I’ll bet you anything Inosuke hasn’t done a single goddamn task this whole time,” she mumbled to herself as she followed Mitsuri’s pink character and the little hamster rolling behind her. (Y/n) stopped at security and did wires while Mitsuri continued downward to lower engine. (Y/n) then double backed to reactor after opening her map and realizing she had numbers to do as well. Once she completed that, (Y/n) only had one more set of wires to complete in the cafeteria. As she made her way up the map, o2 went off. (Y/n) bypassed the wires she needed to fix, and headed to admin where she was the only one around. She opened the task and was about to push the last number when a body was reported. “Mitsuri, care to explain yourself?” Shinobu spoke, her voice eerily calm. “Shinobu, you killed Zenitsu in front of me!” Mitsuri squealed. “It’s a self report (Y/n), I swear!” “(Y/n), would I ever lie to you?” Shinobu asked sweetly. “Yes, yes you would,” (Y/n) replied without hesitation. “You’re a beast at this game. I bet if we played in the same room you could still lie right to my face,” “That’s fair,” Shinobu replied. “Then I implore you to think back to the previous rounds.” “She’s stalling! I swear she did it, (Y/n)!” “(Y/n), when you were in electrical and saw Tomioka standing over Obanai’s body, wasn’t Mitsuri in there before you?” “Yeah, but she was fixing the lights,” (Y/n) recalled. “But how easy would it have been for her to lull Obanai into a false sense of security? Tomioka was indisposed, she probably killed Obanai while he was distracted then quickly turned off the lights, giving herself a cover as she fixed her own sabotage,” “That’s not true!” Mitsuri objected. “Then of course she ran away from reactor when it was in meltdown.” “(Y/n), I know this looks bad but I swear Shinobu is the evil one,” Mitsuri pleaded over the discord. “I-“ “(Y/n), we did a download in nav together at the beginning of the game. I even gave you a little kiss in front of the spaceship task. Does that sound like the work of a murderous space alien, (Y/n)” Shinobu added, interrupting (Y/n)’s train of thought. “N-no, but-“ “Love, trust me,” Shinobu practically purrs as she submits her vote, the sound tickled (Y/n)’s ears and made her become even more flustered. “(Y/n), no! Fight it! You know this isn’t right!” Mitsuri spoke passionately, submitting her vote for Shinobu. “AHHHHH I don’t know!” (Y/n) throws her arms up as the timer clicks dangerously low, she has to vote, one more kill for the imposter means game over. This was the crewmates’ last shot at victory. Then she thinks back to how the game should have ended with a double kill during the reactor meltdown. (Y/n)’s heart speeds up and she’s hit with a rush of premature euphoria. There is no way Shinobu would have messed up that double kill, not with her brutal history as an imposter! “Aha!” (Y/n) cheered, voting for Mitsuri at the very last second. She was practically bouncing in her seat she was so excited. “Nooooo!” Feed my hamster (Y/n), I forgive you!” Mitsuri cried, her voice comically fading out as her pink spaceman floated across the screen. “Isn’t this romantic, just a murderous alien and her human lover,” Shinobu’s sweet voice joyously sang. “Wait, what...? No! No fucking way!” (Y/n) cursed as the defeat message filled her screen. “You fool! I can’t believe you fell for that, idiot!” Inosuke cackled into his mic. “That was unfortunate, if it makes you feel any better I would have believed her too,” Tanjirou comforted. “I told you guys I didn’t kill anyone.” “Shut up, Tomioka,” Obanai huffed. “But, at reactor, why didn’t you do the double kill?” (Y/n) floundered, “Why drag it out? You could have ended it right there!” “And miss out on having my girlfriend and a nice spaceship all to myself? I think not,” Shinobu teased. “Aww that’s so sweet,” Mitsuri cooed. “You do realize that what you are calling ‘sweet’ is what led to you being sucked into space, right?” Obanai asked, his voice filled with more warmth than when he spoke to Giyuu. “Yes, but still.” “Enough pointless chatter! Start! Start another round!” Inosuke demanded. “If you get crewmate again you better finish your tasks, Inosuke. I know for a fact you weren’t doing them as a ghost,” Zenitsu grumbled. “Hmm hmm!” Nezuko agreed, seemingly angry. “Nezuko, are you eating another baguette right now?” Kanao asked. “Eyshureum,” Nezuko paused to swallow and spoke again more clearly, “I sure am.” “Impressive,” Kanao simply stated before going about her own business, moving her little white character in a figure eight pattern around the boxes in the lobby. “(Y/n)! Lord Inosuke commands you to start the next game!” Inosuke commands as his little cyan astronaut with a crown dances over (Y/n)’s character which stood completely still. “(Y/n)? You still there?” Mitsuri asked. “She’s probably still in shock, honestly,” Obanai scoffed, “Hey, (L/n), shake it off and get back in the game, let’s go,” “Sorry everyone, you’ll need to start a new lobby. (Y/n) and I have to go, bye!” Shinobu quickly jumped in out of nowhere. “Wh-“ Shinobu disconnected from discord and the game and pulled (Y/n) further into herself, a prideful smirk on her lips. “You are an evil genius and I totally hate you right now,” (Y/n) gasped after their lips met in a heated kiss. “Aww, don’t be bitter. Mitsuri won’t harbor any hard feelings,” Shinobu murmured, brushing her lips against (Y/n)’s as she spoke. “Besides, you know you love my sadistic side.” “Shut up, and kiss me some more before I change my mind,” (Y/n) frowned and tightened her grip on Shinobu’s shirt. “Happily,” Shinobu whispered, pushing (Y/n) back to lay across the couch. (Y/n)’s frown quickly melted away when Shinobu’s lips met hers once more.

#kny oneshots #demon slayer oneshots #shinobu kocho #shinobu x reader #shinobu kocho x reader #Shinobu kochou #shinobu kochou x reader

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silverynight · 3 years

Note

so maybe to add onto the last chapter of the tanjiro’s hair?? maybe all the hashira are looking for tanjiro and they find out (from aoi) that he’s in the bath and when they all walk in (already half-naked as they ran and changed out of their clothes) they see kanao cleaning inosuke’s hair, inosuke cleaning zenitsu’s hair, zenitsu cleaning tanjiro’s hair, and tanjiro cleaning nezuko’s hair lmaoooo and they all like ready to murder zenitsu as soon as tanjiro kisses his cheek as a thanks lmaooo

Taking a bath together sounds like a good idea; actually Tanjirou suggests it because he wants Zenitsu to relax for a while. He's never seen him so nervous before, when he's not around demons at least.

Tanjirou lets his hair fall over his shoulders and notices as Zenitsu flinches away; at first he thinks it's because the water is cold, but he realizes quickly that it's actually warm to the touch.

"Are you alright?"

"I'm f-fine," he assures, eyeing Tanjirou's hair every now and then.

When Kanao manages to get Inosuke to stay still for a while and starts washing his hair, Tanjirou smiles at them; an idea starts forming in his mind.

"Let's wash each other's hair! Inosuke you can help Zenitsu!"

Zenitsu is not sure about it but finally calms down when he realizes that Inosuke can actually be gentle if he wants to.

Nezuko is already poking her brother's shoulder to demand his attention so he starts washing her hair quickly.

"Can you please do mine, Zenitsu?"

"Your hair..." The blond blushes, looking at Tanjirou's hair as if it's something he's not supposed to touch. It's almost like he's afraid of it.

"It's alright if you don't want to," Tanjirou assures him. It probably looks awful at the moment. "I'll wash it myself as soon as I finish with Nezuko and Kanao's."

"No," Zenitsu mumbles, looking around as if making sure they're the only ones in the bathing area. "It's okay. I'll do it."

Tanjirou relaxes under his touch and the sound of the water. Perhaps it wasn't just Zenitsu the one who needed a little break.

"Why do you have such beautiful hair?" Zenitsu almost sobs behind him, confusing Tanjirou.

"Well... It's the same as my father's so–"

"Oh, no!" Zenitsu cuts him off, suddenly panicking. "They're coming!"

"Who's coming?" Inosuke finally moves, looking around like he's ready to fight.

For a moment, Tanjirou worries too, but his nose doesn't sense any demons nearby.

"Why did Aoi tell them where–"

The hashira rush in and immediately Tanjirou feels a lot better; he knows they're safe with them.

"Are you going to join us?" He asks, beaming, although judging by how little clothes they're wearing, he supposes that was their initial plan.

He's never seen so many muscled bodies before, it makes him feel weak for a moment. Perhaps he should train harder next time.

"My boy!" Rengoku grins at him, almost falling into the water on accident. He looks flustered.

"Your hair is... wet," even though Tomioka mentions his hair, his eyes also roam over Tanjirou's shoulders and arms. For some reason, he doesn't say anything else, it's like he loses his voice suddenly.

"It's clean now!" Tanjirou nods. He turns around to smile at his friend who lets go of his hair as if it's burning. "Thanks to Zenitsu!"

He leans and kisses his cheek afterwards, like his mother used to do to him whenever he or one his siblings helped her with dinner.

Turning bright red, Zenitsu shivers and looks at Tanjirou like he just betrayed him in the worst way possible.

"You just killed me. I'm a dead man."

"What? Zeni–" he stops as soon as he smells the tension and irritation coming from the hashira.

They're pissed. Kanroji sobs and embraces Obanai like she's just been told love is a lie.

"He stole that kiss from one of us!" She lamets, confusing Tanjirou.

Maybe she's talking about something else entirely.

Uzui kneels so he can take Tanjirou's hand, the irritation on his features is almost gone for a moment and he looks down at him with a fond smile.

"Wait for us here, Tanjirou. We'll be right back."

"We just want to have a chat with Agatsuma," Tokito adds, taking a small stone in his hand.

"No! No! Tanjirou! Don't let them hurt me!" Zenitsu sobs, trying to hide behind his friend, but he stops as soon as he realizes that just pisses the hashira even more.

"They're not gonna hurt you, Zenitsu!" Tanjirou assures him, blushing. He promised the master they were going to show the Pillars the respect they deserved. "Now go with them, they're our superiors... You should listen to them."

When Zenitsu is forcibly pushed out of the water by Inosuke, the boy is trembling so hard that Tanjirou decides to follow him out.

"I can go with you..." His hair is soaking wet, but he pushes it behind his shoulders and doesn't give it a second thought as he gets closer to the hashira. But then... "Tomioka-san! Your nose is bleeding!"

"I'm fine," the water hashira assures him, looking away from him and covering his nose with one hand.

Rengoku is frozen on his spot, crossing his arms over his chest rather hard, like he's trying to keep himself right where he is. His face is completely red.

"I promise we're just gonna talk with your friend, Tanjirou," Kocho assures him with a soft smile. "Now please go back in before someone dies of a nosebleed."

Tanjirou nods because he trusts her, even though he still doesn't understand what is really going on. He tries to forget about it by washing Kanao's hair.

Even though they're at the other side of the bathing area and Tanjirou doesn't have Zenitsu's hearing, he still can catch a few sentences.

"YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO HELP US!"

"I'M TRYING TO!"

"YOU CALL THAT HELPING?"

"Do you think they're talking about a mission?" He asks Inosuke who's trying to tell Kanao how he helped Tanjirou defeat what he calls the spider demon family.

"Yes. They probably realized how useless he is in battle," Inosuke says.

"He's not useless!"

"Well, he's not as amazing as I am!"

Tanjirou sighs, knowing he won't get another kind of response from his friend.

Maybe he should ask Zenitsu later.

***

Patreon

#kny #kimetsu no yaiba #demon slayer #tanjiro kamado #giyu tomioka #kyojuro rengoku #tengen uzui #muichiro tokito #mitsuri kanroji #obanai iguro #shinobu kochou #zenitsu agatsuma #inosuke hashibira #nezuko kamado #anonymous #asks #ask silverynight

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yellowcanna · 4 years

Text

Summer Sleet

Summary:

When Kamado Tanjirou first saw him, he was mesmerized. The young boy had never met anyone as beautiful as Tomioka Giyuu. Ink black hair with skin as white as the snow around him and eyes that reminded Tanjirou of the sea...he was the Omega of every Alpha's dream.

When Tanjirou's family was slaughtered at fifteen, he never expected to be pulled from the mundane life of a human and into the world of Alphas and Omegas. He also never expected that he only has five more years to live, much less falling in love with his mentor.

Rating: T

Genre: Yaoi, Fluff, Comfort, Omegaverse

Pairing: Tanjirou x Giyuu (Alpha Tanjirou, Omega Giyuu)

Author: Yellow_Canna

Chapters: 2/3

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CHAPTER 2

AUTUMN DRIZZLE

Dear Giyuu-san,

How have you been, Giyuu-san?

It’s been a week, but I’ve settled at the Butterfly Estate. Kochou-san and everyone here are very kind to me and Nezuko. I’ve been continuing my training and haven’t stopped using the Total Concentration Breathing you’ve taught me. I’ve also met Kochou-san’s Tsuguko, Kanao-san. We’re training together every day. Kanao-san is very strong, we’ve fought ten matches so far, but they were all ties.

Nezuko is also doing great! It seems that she has a talent in medicine and is learning under Kochou-san with the other Omegas in the estate. Nezuko has been making lots of friends; one of them is Aoi-san, an Omega who is the same age as her!

I’ve also met two other Alphas my age! One of them is Zenitsu! Like me, he was born in the human village and knew nothing about Alphas and Omegas. It was the retired Thunder Hashira that found and raised him. He might cry a lot, but he's strong when he put his all into it. Though he tends to cause a lot of trouble to the girls here...

The other friend I met is Inosuke. I’m not sure how Inosuke ended up in the Corps, all I’ve heard was that he was born in the mountain and raised by a boar. The Breathing Techniques he uses are called Breathe of the Beast! He created them all by himself and he’s super strong in close combat! He's a really amazing person!

It’s been fun here every day, but I still miss the times with—

“Heeey, Tanjirou!”

“Ah, Zenitsu!” Tanjirou looked up from the letter he was writing. Zenitsu was standing by the door, having half of his head poking out and looking at him as if Tanjirou was the biggest scum on the planet.

“Z…Zenitsu?” Tanjirou blinked, not sure why Zenitsu looked and smelled so…angry.

“That's the second time you've written a letter since you got here," Zenitsu stated sourly, remaining half hidden behind the door and glaring at him with one exposed eye.

“Uh…yes?” Tanjirou blinked, wondering what was wrong.

“Whenever you write, your heart rate even spikes.” The blonde added.

At that, the redhead’s face began to heat up and that was all Zenitsu needed to kick open the door and jab a finger at him.

“I KNEW IT! YOU HAVE A SECRET LOVER DON’T YOU, YOU BASTARD!!”

“Zenitsu! It’s the middle of the night! Quiet down!”

“SHUT UP!! YOU TRAITOROUS BASTARD! DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA HOW JEALOUS I AM?! WHO IS THE LUCKY GIRL?!”

“It’s not like that, Zenitsu!”

"YOU LIAR! I CAN HEAR YOUR HEARTBEAT SPIKE FROM DOWN THE HALL!!"

“It’s just one-sided!” When Tanjirou shouted that out, Zenitsu immediately stopped screaming. He stared at Tanjirou with wide eyes before a disturbing smile broke over his face.

“Tanjirou~! If you have any love problems, you can share it with your best friend here!” What Zenitsu really wanted to say was for Tanjirou to share some pain so he could feel better at all the rejections he has gotten over the years.

Tanjirou looked down at his half-written letter.

“The person I like is an adult. He doesn’t see me as anything but a kid.”

“Adult?!" Zenitsu gapped as he stared at Tanjirou in a new light. Even he didn’t dare to propose to an adult! Such boldness! “Don’t tell me it’s…Kochou-san?!”

“No!” Tanjirou was a little flustered at the accusation. “It’s…he’s called Giyuu-san.”

“Giyuu?” Zenitsu furrowed his brows. That name was familiar, but where did he hear it from? One thing’s for sure, it wasn’t anyone from the Butterfly Estate. Zenitsu had memorized all the girls’ names on day one.

“Wait…” Zenitsu paled as a name that matched with Giyuu suddenly flashed by his mind.

There was only one person he knew with that name.

After all…who doesn’t?!

But it couldn’t be, right?

“T-Tanjirou…” Zenitsu held up a shaky finger as he pointed in his companion in disbelieve. “D-Don’t tell me this Giyuu is that Water Hashira, Tomioka Giyuu?!”

“Zenitsu, you know Giyuu-san?” Tanjirou beamed while Zenitsu fell over.

“YOU’RE IN LOVE WITH THE WATER HASHIRA?!”

“QUIET DOWN!” The voice of the girl howled from the doorway.

The two boys immediately snapped their mouths shut and looked to the doorway. There stood Kanzaki Aoi, in all her fuming glory. “Stop screaming in the middle of the night and go back to your room!”

“Hiiie!” Zenitsu tried to shrink away, but the raven-haired Omega was having none of it. She grabbed the Alpha by the back of his collar and yanked him out of Tanjirou’s room.

Tanjirou watched the leave, closing the door behind them as they go. The redhead let out a small chuckle before turning back to his letter. He didn’t care if anyone knew about his crush on Giyuu. He didn’t think it was a shameful feeling that he should hide, nor did he have any intention of hiding it.

He picked up his brush again and continued writing.

The very next day, Tanjirou had his Kasugaigarasu go deliver his letter. The first time he tried getting the crow to send it, the Kasugaigarasu—or Matsuemon Tennouji as it called himself—nearly pecked his eyeballs out.

The bird gave him a long lecture which basically came down to—how dare you want the great me to deliver letters for you?!

It was only after Tanjirou had promised the crow with high-quality food did the crow begrudgingly agreed. The crow flew off reluctantly, but returned ecstatic and wouldn’t stop pestering Tanjirou for more letters.

It wasn’t hard for Tanjirou to learn why. On the crow, the young Alpha could smell tuna—fatty tuna, as well as scents of other seafood like salmons and shrimps. He couldn’t help but smiled knowing that Giyuu had fed the picky crow for him.

During his stay in the Water Estate, Tanjirou was no stranger to the Kasugaigarasus’ diet. He sometimes helped the Kakushis feed the crows, and seafood was not on those crows’ menu.

Giyuu’s scent was heavy on the crow as well, which meant that he must have been the one to take care of his crow, not anyone else in the manor. Knowing this made Tanjirou all warm and fuzzy inside. He didn’t mind that Giyuu never responded to any of his letters. Just knowing he had received and read them was good enough for him.

Tanjirou watched the crow took flight with the letter gripped tightly in its talons. He stood there, staring until the bird was nothing but a speck of black in the blue sky before he turned—only to yelp and jump back in surprise.

“K-Kochou-san!”

Standing right there behind him, with her face only an inch away, was the Insect Hashira—Kochou Shinobu.

The female Omega was wearing that usual smile on her face with her orchid purple eyes locked on Tanjirou.

“A wonderful day today, is it not?” She asked brightly.

“Yes, it is!” Tanjirou responded automatically.

“I’ve heard of an interesting rumour, Tanjirou-kun~” She closed in on Tanjirou again. “That you are in love with Tomioka-san?”

Tanjirou was only stunned for a second before a smile stretched across his face.

“Yes, I am.”

Kochou blinked, obviously not expecting the boy to be so upfront. She stared at Tanjirou for a moment before she broke out into a laugh. This wasn’t her usual strained laugh, but a genuine laugh from the bottom of her heart.

“Well then, I wish you the best in wooing him.” She chirped as she walked away, her butterfly kimono fluttering around her as she moved.

She was already plotting all the things she could do with this information. More than that, she was curious to see just how far this boy can get into Giyuu’s heart. When she first heard it from the Love Hashira, Kochou honestly didn’t believe a word. After all, it was hard to imagine an aloof Omega like Giyuu was capable of any affection.

This was certainly going to be interesting.

The Insect Hashira wasn’t joking when she said the rumour had traveled around. By noon, everyone knew about Tanjirou’s crush on his mentor and caretaker. Many even came to ask him about it. The Alpha never denied anything and always happily answered any questions that were asked. With Tanjirou so openly talked about his feelings like this, many people gradually lost interest in his love life.

By the evening, the impact of the news had already died down.

“You…like the Water Hashira?” Aoi had come over to where he, Zenitsu, and Inosuke had been sitting during dinner. She had a deep frown on her face as she stared at Tanjirou.

“Yes.” Tanjirou smiled as he repeated the answer for the umpteenth times this day.

The furrow of Aoi’s brows deepened. She looked like she wanted to say something, but Zenitsu beat her to it.

“But you said it yourself that he just sees you as a kid. He’s an adult and on top of that, a Hashira!”

“Is he strong?!” Inosuke immediately asked over his mouthful of food.

“Of course he’s strong! What part of he’s a Hashira don’t you understand?!” Zenitsu yelled. “And don’t speak with your mouth full! That’s disgusting!”

“I’ve heard that the Water Hashira is an extraordinarily beautiful Omega.” Aoi suddenly said, still looking straight into Tanjirou’s eyes.

Zenitsu and Inosuke stopped fighting, not because of Aoi's words, but the sudden change on Tanjirou’s face.

The boy’s cheeks were dusted in light shades of pink as his lips stretched out in the brightest smile any of them had ever seen.

“Yes, Giyuu-san is the most beautiful person I’ve ever met!” He said as if it was something for him to boast about.

“…I see. Then if you’ll excuse me.” Aoi grabbed her tray of food and left, stomping across the cafeteria and disappearing from their sights.

“Aoi-san seemed angry for some reason?” Tanjirou tilted his head, not sure what had he done to displease the girl.

“You don’t know how to read the mood, do you?” Zenitsu muttered while Inosuke went back to stuffing his face.

“What do you mean?” Tanjirou asked with such an innocent tone that just made Zenitsu wanted to punch him in the face.

"So…is the Water Hashira that pretty?” Zenitsu asked, deciding to change the topic back. There was no way he’ll tell Tanjirou about his popularity with the girls here.

“Yes!” Tanjirou said with such confidence that it made Zenitsu a little curious of what this Water Hashira looked like. Just a little.

“Well, whatever, no one can be prettier than Nezuko-chan!”

Tanjirou smiled as Zenitsu swoon over his sister like usual. Despite being an Alpha, Zenitsu grew up with humans, so the blond only had eyes for females.

The redhead took another bite of his food and wondered what Giyuu was doing right now. Although they had only parted for three months, it felt like forever. He wanted to see him so much that it hurts. He wanted nothing more than to rush back to the Water Estate, just to get a glimpse of Giyuu and see how he's doing.

Three more years—he would tell himself whenever his feelings became too unbearable.

All he needed to do was to wait for three more years. In these three years, he’ll become strong. He’ll become so strong that Giyuu won’t be able to look at him like a child that needed to be protected.

“Inosuke, let’s spar after this!”

“Now you’re talking, Monjirou!”

“It’s Tanjirou!”

◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌

“Hmm…exquisite~”

“Why does a bird know such big word…?” Murata muttered, the corner of his lips twitching as he watched the Kasugaigarasu picked out another slice of tender meat and swallowed greedily.

No, more importantly, why the heck was a bird eating out of their Hashira’s bowl?!

He was certain that this stupid crow was purposely choosing dinner time to come back. The feathery creature was rolling around on their Hashira’s lap with said Hashira’s hand gently stroking its feathers!

Whenever it wanted food, all it had to do was reach up and stick that filthy beak into the bowl in Giyuu’s hand to eat the food specially made for the Omega!

The gyudon made for the Hashira just turned into plain rice! That flying black chicken even ate the eggs and pickled ginger!

Murata wasn’t the only one frustrated. The Kakushis were also glaring at the crow. Some of them were even leaking out tears from anger. A couple of minutes ago, the chief came running with the kitchen knife when he heard that damn crow had come to eat their Hashira's food again. It took everything from the other the kitchen staffs to drag him back into the kitchen before he was spotted by their Hashira.

Giyuu was blissfully oblivious of his people’s internal crises as he looked down when he felt a tug on his sleeve. The bird was looking at him with those beady black eyes. Giyuu glanced at his bowl of rice before carefully using his chopsticks to pick out the rice that was soaked in the meat juice and held it to the bird. The Kasugaigarasu gobbled it up happily. When some of the juice dripped down the side of its beak, Giyuu used his finger to carefully wipe it off.

Finally satisfied, the crow flipped over on Giyuu's lap with its wings sprawled. Giyuu resumed his dinner (rice), only to stopped when he heard snapping sounds of wood.

He glanced across the dining room to where the Kakushis and Murata were sitting on the other side.

“What’s wrong?” He asked, blue eyes spotting the broken chopsticks scattered over the tatami, all of them snapped in two.

“N-nothing!” Gotou quickly laughed it off while trying hard not to let the veins on his forehead show. “It must be those merchants again! They keep selling us broken goods! I’ll give them a good lecture the next time I see them!”

“…I see.” Giyuu nodded, easily buying the lie and not even questioning it. This made Gotou felt extremely guilty as if he had betrayed his Hashira's trust.

“T-there’s some salmon daikon in the kitchen!” Gotou shouted. “Would you like me to get you some, Tomioka-sama?”

At the mention of his favourite food, Giyuu’s eyes light up a little and nodded.

Gotou brightened. He jumped onto his feet, about to run off when the Kasugaigarasu spoke.

“I want some too!”

THAT DAMN BIRD—was all of their thoughts as Gotou’s happy spirit was instantly swallowed by rage.

After a long, painful dinner (for the Kakushis and Murata), the devil finally left. The Kasugaigarasu flew away with such large belly and it was a wonder it could fly at all. They stared at the cloudy night sky, wondering if there could be a chance of a lightning bolt striking that damn thing down.

Of course, those were just wishful thinking. Even if a lightning bolt was to miraculously come down, they all knew that bird would survive. Of all the Kasugaigarasus they have, Tanjirou’s was the most capable one since it was Giyuu who raised it. While insanely intelligent, the downside was that aside from training, Giyuu pretty much gave it anything it wanted.

In other words, that crow was spoiled rotten.

Since Giyuu’s personal crow was getting too old, that Kasugaigarasu was trained to become the Hashira’s next crow. When Giyuu had given it to Tanjirou, they were all overjoyed. They thought at the very least they’ll have a couple of quiet years, but no. That damn bird was exploiting every opportunity it has to act even more spoiled than before! If it was in the past, even that crow wouldn’t dare to roll around in Giyuu’s laps and eat his food!

It knew Giyuu needed it to look after Tanjirou and was using it to its advantage!

Later that night, Murata headed for Giyuu’s room, carrying a tray of snacks the kitchen had prepared considering half of Giyuu’s meal went into a certain bird’s stomach. After knocking a couple of times, Murata found that Giyuu wasn’t in his room, so he headed for the garden. Just as he thought, Giyuu was sitting there, bathed in the moonlight as blue eyes gazed upon the letter in his hand.

The Hashira looked up when Murata approached him before turning his eyes back to the letter.

“Is that from Tanjirou?” Murata asked curiously, receiving a soft nod from Giyuu. He down set the tray of snacks next to his Hashira. Just as he thought about leaving, his eyes trailed to the letter in Giyuu’s hand and finally asked the question that had been bothering him for a while.

“It’s been four months. Are you sure you’re not going to reply? He might be waiting to hear from you.”

“…There’s no need.” Giyuu responded, eyes never looking up from the letter but his tone leaving no place for Murata to continue the conversation. With a quiet sigh, Murata walked away, but not without looking over his shoulder and to the lonely back of his Hashira.

No one ever talked about it, but they were all worried since Tanjirou had left…especially how he left.

The whole confession was a huge surprise to them, but once they got over that, they were thrilled. After all, they all thought Giyuu would just…well, live out the rest of his life like this. They never once thought their reclusive Hashira would have an admirer—even if that admirer was his own Tsuguko.

Sure Tanjirou was a child right now, but he’s an Alpha. On top of that, they were only six years apart. For Alpha and Omegas who live out an average of three hundred years, this can’t even be considered an age gap.

Murata didn’t worry about Tanjirou, because he knew that boy would follow through his words. But he knew Giyuu even longer and knew that Giyuu wouldn’t so easily accept the boy’s feeling, even when he comes back as an adult.

“Aaaah! Why is it so complicated?” Murata furiously scratched his head and looked up to the night sky.

Just like this, the seasons quietly begin to pass.

The flowers of spring withered the land began to warm under the blazing sun.

The colours of summer leaves began to change, painted into red and gold.

The frosty air blew from the north, plucking away the last leaves of autumn.

Snow melted as winter ends.

The cycle continued to repeat, never-ending.

Live goes on within the Water Estate. It was a quiet peaceful life they led, yet they had never found it to be so mundane until they welcomed the two children into their home. Now that those children were gone, a hole has been left in the manor, unable to be filled up.

Every week, Tanjirou’s Kasugaigarasu was sure to show up at the Water Estate to deliver Giyuu a letter.

No one knew what the content of those letters was, but they knew that Giyuu never once wrote anything back.

He never even had the Kasugaigarasu deliver a verbal message.

Despite that, the Hashira would always be sitting in the garden before dinner, staring at the sky expectantly.

Then finally…three years had passed.

It was July and in the middle of the scorching summer heat.

Since the Water Estate was on the mountain top, the heat was welcoming as everyone worked. However, as they work, they couldn’t help but feel anxious. After all, it was July 14th, the day of Tanjirou’s birth. It was also the day that he will undergo the painful process of the growth spurt.

No one slept that night.

They were all waiting impatiently for the news.

Did Tanjirou make it?

He has to make it…the Insect Hashira was the one who checked his body.

A whole day has gone by, yet no news of Tanjirou came.

On the third day, just the Kakushis were breaking down from the lack of sleep; a Kasugaigarasu flew to the manor. It was a Kasugaigarasu from the master himself, announcing to them that Tanjirou had survived the growth spurt.

The boy they knew was now physically and mentally an adult.

The Water Estate threw a huge celebration before everyone retired to their bed.

The only one that stayed outside was Giyuu.

He stood in the garden beneath the drizzle, eyes gazing off into the distant sky.

Since then, the Kakushis had cleaned up the manor in preparation for the Alpha and his sister’s return. When days passed and still without a sign of the siblings, they convinced themselves that Tanjirou must be still worn out after the change.

Days turned into weeks and weeks turned into months.

Neither of the two children they once knew returned. There weren't even any more letters from Tanjirou’s Kasugaigarasu. Under the pressure of the Kakushis, Murata hesitantly asked Giyuu if he could maybe send out a message to ask if the two were alright.

Giyuu, worried about the Kamado siblings’ safety as well, sent out a letter to the master. The response he received was that after recovery, Tanjirou and Nezuko had gone to other Hashira’s regions. The master didn’t specify which, but it was enough to confirm that those two were safe.

Since sending that one letter, Giyuu never wrote a second one. The Kakushis and Murata didn’t believe that Tanjirou wouldn’t come back, but under Giyuu’s stern order, they no longer talked about it.

Tanjirou had made his choice.

He wasn’t going to return to the Water Estate.

Perhaps now that he had grown into an adult, he realized just how foolish his feelings had been.

Life in the Water Estate went on, like the steady stream of flowing water.

With the coming of autumn, the mountains were dyed in beautiful shades of vibrant colours. Two Kakushis were at the front door sweeping the endless leaves being blown into the manor when their Hashira appeared.

“Tomioka-sama.” They bowed to Giyuu who nodded, acknowledging their existence as he walked by them.

There were no words from their Hashira as they quietly watch him leave.

They waited for a good half an hour before they dare to speak. After all, Omegas have very keen senses and on top of that Giyuu is a Hashira. His ability wasn’t something they dare to underestimate.

“Tomioka-sama hasn’t been himself lately…” The female Kakushi sighed.

“Can you blame him?” Her companion muttered, keeping his voice as long as he could. “Even now, I can’t believe that Tanjirou-sama hasn’t come back.”

“I’m telling you, something must have happened!” The female beta hissed. “We should—”

“What? Ask Tomioka-sama to look for him?” The male Beta cut her off. “What if Tanjirou-sama and Nezuko found elsewhere to live?”

“But…but…” The female Beta looked like she wanted to argue, but couldn’t come up with anything convincing.

“Either way, Tomioka-sama has been going to the spring again this year.” The male Beta said, changing the topic as he looked towards another mountain in the distance. With the speed of an Omega, Giyuu could easily cross the land and arrive there in a matter of minutes, but instead, he chose to take his time to stroll over.

“Is it really alright to let Tomioka-sama go alone like this?” The female beta frowned disapprovingly. “So far nothing has happened, but what if—”

“If what?” A third voice suddenly cut in, startling the two as they whirled around to see the head Kakushi standing right behind them.

“Gotou-san!”

“You two sure have guts gossiping behind a Hashira’s back like this.” Gotou huffed with his arms crossed over his chest.

“W-well, we’re just worried…” The female beta scratched the back of her head sheepishly.

"If there was danger, we'll just get in Tomioka-sama's way." Gotou sighed. "Even in Heat, Tomioka-sama can still take down any Alpha that tries to approach him. Now if you understand, get back to work! The leaves are piling up!”

“Eeeeeh?” The two betas whined, but they have no choice but to continue sweeping.

◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌

As the sun slowly sank into the horizon, Giyuu arrived at his destination at the top of the mountain. His face was flushed and his head was spinning. He stood in front of the small spring with water gently flowing down the rocky edges of the mountain. At the heart of this tiny spring, there was a crack within the rocks, continuously providing fresh water from deep within the heart of the mountain.

The raven pulled out his sword, setting it on the edge of the spring before he began to untie his kimono. He took off the outer layer, leaving only his inner white kimono as he folded the clothing and set it next to his sword. He then removed his socks and sandals, setting them neatly onto the rocks.

The moment his bare feet touched the water, the Omega shivered lightly and heaved out a small breathe of relief. He sank into the water, letting the coldness envelop his feverish body until the water reached up to his neck. He rested his head against the edge of the spring and closed his eyes, letting the water to nurse his broken body.

Despite seemingly resting, Giyuu was spreading his senses around him. He was listening to every little sound and smelling the changes in the air. He didn't need to see the darkness behind his eyelids to know the sun had gone down.

The crisp night air filled his nose as the melody of crickets rang next to his ears.

A chilly breeze blew by, brushing some of his raven hair into his face as the rustling of leaves echoed into the night.

At that moment, Giyuu’s eyes snapped open in alarm as he caught a faint trace of scent in the wind. Although it was only for a moment, Giyuu knew what he had smelled.

It was the smell of an Alpha.

His eyes dilated and his body instantly sprang into action. He grabbed the sword by his side, unsheathing it as his blue blade glowed under the moonlight. He leaped out of the spring in a splash with droplets of water flying around him.

He waved his sword, creating a flow of water around him.

Breath of Water Fourth Form: Striking Tide.

Giyuu’s eyes were locked on a particular red maple tree as he swung his sword forward.

Catching a blur of shadow darting out from behind the tree, Giyuu changed the course of his blade, chasing after that figure. He only saw a flicker of red light from the other’s sword before flames burst out, meeting his strike head-on.

The moment the two blades collided, a burst of mist erupted around them, created by the water and fire. While Giyuu couldn’t see through the heavy mist blowing out from between their clashed sword, he was able to see the blade of his enemy.

His eyes narrowed at the crimson flames erupting from the other’s blade. The first person that came to his mind was Rengoku. After all, that is the only Alpha Giyuu knew with red blade and Breathe of Flames technique, and this person before him was not Rengoku.

However, there was no doubt that his strength was on par with that of a Hashira.

Giyuu could tell the moment their swords clashed. Due to the Heat, his body was greatly weakened but he should still be able to overpower most Alphas and Omegas. Right now, Giyuu was putting all his strength into his sword, yet the hand holding the sword blocking his was steady. That meant whoever this Alpha was, he wasn’t putting all his strength into meeting the Water Hashira’s attack.

For someone with such strength and capability, there was no way Giyuu wouldn’t know of him, which meant he’s not part of the Corps.

This was a rouge.

Giyuu gritted his teeth. Of all time to encounter a rouge Alpha, it has to be when he’s in Heat. Though that was no excuse for being weak.

The raven-haired Omega leaped back, breaking away from their deadlock before charging towards the Alpha again.

“Please wait!” The Alpha in the mist shouted. His voice was deep and a little hoarse. Just the sound of the Alpha’s voice nearly made Giyuu’s legs give out, but the raven bit down on his tongue. The pain from his throbbing tongue immediately cleared his head as he swallowed the coppery blood pooling inside his mouth.

In an instant, the two of them were engaged in a high-speed battle. Echoes of metals rang from the mountain top as Giyuu attacked the Alpha with smooth and quick swordsmanship. Despite not being able to see the enemy clearly, all his attacks were aimed at the enemy’s vital spots.

It was only after the first initial exchanges that Giyuu noticed something wrong.

This Alpha wasn’t attacking back. From the very beginning, he had only been defending from the Omega onslaught…

“Giyuu-san! It’s me!” The voice yelled again.

Giyuu frowned. He was certain he didn’t know anyone with that voice. As for scents…due to the heavy water vapours in the air, the scent was diluted, but Giyuu was certain sure he had never smelled this scent before.

Had he not been in Heat, Giyuu might stop, but he was. In his current weakened state, he can’t afford to make any mistake. It was possible that this was part of the enemy’s trick—to pretend they were acquainted to get his guard off. Such underhanded tactics weren't uncommon among the rouges and sadly, these tactics have worked many times.

The Omega slashed his sword down as their blades clashed again.

“Giyuu-san, it’s Tanjirou!”

That made Giyuu stop. He froze, sword stopping mid-swing as he stared at the silhouette of the person within the mist.

Giyuu only a stream of bright flames as the mist around them were evaporated, revealing the face of the Alpha Giyuu had been attacking.

“Tan…jirou?” Giyuu stared in shock at this boy—no, this man in front of him.

The man was half a head taller than Giyuu with long auburn hair tied into a ponytail that flowed down his back. His bangs that were once combed back were now framing this man’s face. His facial structure had become sharp and define, losing baby fat from his child's body. Those rounded ruby eyes grew narrower, giving him a more mature look.

And finally…that red birthmark on the left side of the boy’s forehead.

There was no mistake.

This was Tanjirou.

“Giyuu-san.” The man in front of Giyuu smiled. Despite how different he now looked, that smile never changed…

“Are you stupid?!" Giyuu roared the second he got over the shock. Anger distorted his face as he glared at the Alpha that was now taller than him. “I could have hurt you! Why are you on this mountain?!”

“I’m sorry!” Tanjirou hastily sheathed his sword and held his hands up. “I was on my way to the Water Estate, but then I smelled Giyuu-san so I—”

“If your nose is functioning then you should realize that I’m in Heat! Don’t you know it’s dangerous to go near an Omega in Heat?!”

“I’m sorry, Giyuu-san!”

Giyuu couldn’t stop the anger from rushing out. He had never felt such rage before. He was angry at Tanjirou’s carelessness, but more than anything, he was angry at himself. Now that Tanjirou’s body had changed, it was only natural for him not to recognize his voice and scent. Had Tanjirou not been able to block and deflect his attacks, he could have killed him.

“Leave the mountain! Right now!” The Omega ordered. Perhaps it was the rush of anger, or perhaps he had been shouting too much and used up more oxygen than he was breathing in. His vision suddenly turned black for a second—or at least, it felt like a second to him.

When Giyuu came to, he found himself cradled in Tanjirou’s arms. The redhead was stroking Giyuu’s back as Water Hashira gasped for breath. Each breath he took in, Giyuu found his lungs being filled with the Alpha’s warm summer scent. This only further fueled the flames he had been trying to suppress inside him.

“Giyuu-san!” Tanjirou held Giyuu tightly as he looked down to see the Omega squirming in pain.

Tanjirou immediately picked up Giyuu and ran over to the spring. With great care, Tanjirou lowered the Omega into the water. The moment the Alpha's hands touched the water, he realized just how cold this spring was. Just for being in the water for a couple of seconds, his hands were already starting to grow numb.

After setting Giyuu into the water, Tanjirou took off his crimson kimono with black patterned flames. Since changing into his adult body, his old kimono didn’t fit anymore, so Tanjirou was given this one by Rengoku.

He folded his kimono and lifted Giyuu’s head. He paused for a second, unable to help but marvel how soft the raven hair before tucking makeshift pillow underneath. The moment Tanjirou’s fingers left Giyuu, the Alpha heard a soft sigh escaping Giyuu’s pink lips.

That made Tanjirou dropped his gaze and gawked at the peaceful sleeping face of his mentor. The instant he began to stare, he could no longer pull his eyes away.

Giyuu was truly stunning. During these years apart, Tanjirou could only see the man in his dreams…but here he was right in front of him. He was even more beautiful than he remembered. Perhaps it was because his body had finally grown up. Right now, Tanjirou wanted nothing more than to hold Giyuu in his arm and smell the exotic scent exclusive to the Omega.

Realizing what was going through his head, Tanjirou snapped out and swallowed the saliva threatening to leak out. He hastily averted his eyes—only to land on Giyuu’s body.

Tanjirou’s face exploded into various shades of red.

Giyuu’s body…or rather that kimono on his body…it was practically see-through!

The white fabric was barely hiding anything on the Omega’s body as it floated within the water! Since Tanjirou had been so busy blocking Giyuu’s attacks before and trying to explain, he hadn’t looked away from Giyuu’s eyes. And afterward, because Giyuu collapsed, the only thing going through his head was how to help Giyuu.

Never once did Tanjirou took notice of Giyuu’s body…until now.

“Hn…Tanjirou?”

“Y-yes!” Tanjirou sputtered, face burning even hotter as he ripped his eyes away from the Omega’s body. The moment he saw the pain Giyuu’s face, the fire burning in him was quelled and was replaced with worry.

The Alpha leaned over the spring and carefully put a hand against Giyuu’s cheek. “Giyuu-san, are you alright? Is there anything I could do?” He asked in a hushed whisper, as if afraid he'll startle the Omega by speaking louder.

Giyuu groaned as he closed his eyes and leaned into the warm palm against his cheek. Tanjirou stiffened, but didn’t pull away and just continued to watch Giyuu. Eventually, Giyuu’s breathing began to even out, falling back into slumber.

Tanjirou smiled as he slowly pulled his hand away. The feeling of the Omega’s soft cheek lingered in his palm. His eyes then dropped down to the Omega’s neck. When Giyuu had turned his head, his hair fell to the side, exposing the scarred mating gland on the left side of his neck.

Tanjirou had seen it before, but he never thought much about it in the past. Now…now he knew exactly what that scar meant. During these years, training wasn’t the only thing he had done. He had also been learning more about both Alpha and Omega dynamics.

He had also met up with Urokodaki who came to visit him after hearing him staying at the Butterfly Estate. Reuniting with Urokodaki led him to learn more things about Giyuu…such as his Heat.

Due to their long lifespan, having offspring was hard for Alphas and Omegas. In their entire life, an Alpha Omega couple might only get one child. Though if they mate with a human or Beta, the chance of having children will be higher, but unless the Alpha or Omega came from a strong bloodline, children born from humans or Beta were generally weaker.

That’s why Alpha and Omega have something called a mating cycle. For Alpha, this was called a Rut. For Omega, it was Heat. During this cycle, their body’s fertility will go up to heighten the chance of producing offspring.

In order to have mating cycles, they must first need to be mated.

Only mated Alpha and Omegas can smell the special pheromone rolling off their partner during the mating cycle. It was said that the smell was like a sweet aphrodisiac. Unmated Alphas and Omegas may able to smell a Rut or Heat, but they won’t be affected. That was what made this dangerous, as these unmated Alphas and Omegas could use it to their advantage.

Alphas and Omegas suffering Rut or Heat were extremely vulnerable, as their bodies were greatly weakened for the sake of mating. There were always people who might exploit that—such as rouge Alphas and Omegas that had no morals of their own.

Giyuu was a victim of that.

From what Tanjirou heard from Urokodaki, Giyuu had been forcefully marked during the attack on the Water Estate. The attack back then was nothing more than a hunt for the rouges. After all, the Alphas and Omegas in the Water Estate were nothing but children.

They hunt them down, slaughtered them and those unfortunate to catch their eyes were forcefully marked. Giyuu was one of those that got marked. He was also the only one to survive as the others couldn't accept being marked and committed suicide.

The moment Giyuu was bitten by an Alpha, Sabito was fortunately nearby. He was able to kill the rouge by catching him off guard before using his sword to shave off Giyuu’s marred scent gland. Since the Alpha had just begun to inject his pheromone into Giyuu, the pheromone wasn’t given the chance to spread into the Omega’s body before Sabito cut it off.

Nearly mating then losing his scent gland made Giyuu’s body go into shock—making him incapable of fighting. Had this happened after Giyuu turned into an adult, the scent gland wouldn’t have grown back. But since he was a child, the growth spurt reshaped Giyuu’s body and his scent gland was grown back, but the scar left by Sabito’s blade remained.

The empty scar on his scent gland made Giyuu’s body think that he had mated and since then Giyuu would suffer the burn of Heat every year in autumn. The only way to subdue the Heat was through the spring water exclusive to this mountain. The coldness helped maintain his body's temperature from reaching too high while the rich mineral content in the water nursed the Omega's body.

Just the thought of everything that Giyuu had suffered through made Tanjirou angry. It also made him wanted to gather the Omega into his arms and treasure him as he should be.

Ruby eyes shimmered beneath the autumn moon as they gazed gently at the person lying in the water.

“Giyuu-san…” The whisper of his beloved’s name was carried away by the gentle breeze. Despite how that person was within an arm’s reach, Tanjirou found himself unable to cross the barrier separating them.

◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌

When Giyuu opened his eyes, the first thing he saw was a familiar ceiling. He frowned, feeling that something was off, but his head was too drowsy to come up with any proper thoughts. He raised an arm and covered his eyes.

He lay until his mind began to function again. Memories of the night slowly drifted back, pieces by pieces.

The moment Tanjirou’s face flashed across his eyes, Giyuu was instantly awake. He shot up, looking around to find that he was back in his room. He looked down at the white kimono on his body. It wasn't the same one he had been wearing, but a thicker one…one that he always used for sleep. From it Giyuu could smell a faint whiff of Murata’s scent, meaning the other Omega must have been the one who changed his clothes.

Giyuu pushed the quill off his body and hurried to the door. The moment he slid it open and took a step into the hallway, he stopped. There was something soft and silky right under his foot…

The raven-haired man dipped his head and saw a lock of auburn hair being crushed under his pale foot. The Omega quickly pulled his foot away as if he had gotten turned. Ocean blue eyes followed the hair until they landed upon the person sitting right beside his doorway.

“Tanjirou?”

The Alpha was bathed within the bright moonlight as he smiled up at him.

“Giyuu-san.” Tanjirou greeted as he stood up. When Giyuu had to lift his head to meet the other’s gaze, he was reminded of just how much the other had grown. “How are you feeling?”

“…I'm fine," Giyuu replied before frowning at the sky that was still dark. "How long was I out for?"

"Two nights now," Tanjirou answered.

Giyuu nodded. That would explain why it was still nighttime.

The Hashira looked back to Tanjirou before remembering how soft and silky the hair felt when his foot accidentally stepped on it.

“You grew your hair out.”

“It just became like this after my growth spurt.” Tanjirou laughed weakly as he brushed some of the longer strands of hair off his shoulder. “I hadn’t found the time to cut it yet. I’ve been busy training under the other Hashiras.”

Giyuu just nodded in understanding. The two stared at one another for a moment before Tanjirou smiled and took a step forward.

“Giyuu-san—”

Giyuu didn’t know what came over him. The moment Tanjirou stood that step, Giyuu became hyperaware of how close they’ll become so he took a step back to maintain their distance.

Tanjirou seemed stunned at Giyuu’s action, the rest of his words forgotten.

The Water Hashira instantly regretted his action. It wasn’t his intention to hurt the other. He didn’t know what came over him. He glanced at Tanjirou, but instead of looking sad or hurt, the Alpha was…smiling.

“Giyuu-san is finally looking at me.”

Giyuu’s dark brows furrowed. Why was Tanjirou talking as if he had never looked at him before?

“I love you, Giyuu-san.”

The Omega's breathing hitched.

“There hasn’t been a day gone by without me thinking of you. Becoming an adult only made me realized how much more I feel about you.”

“Tanjirou, I—”

Giyuu struggled to find a way to phrase his words. He didn’t think that after all these years, Tanjirou would still tell him this. Except this was different now…now, Giyuu can no longer tell Tanjirou that he was just mistaking his feelings. It was also at this moment that Giyuu thought that perhaps when he told Tanjirou he had misunderstood his feelings, he was also finding an excuse for himself to not face the issue head-on.

“There are better Omegas for you.” Giyuu sighed, turning his head away. “There are many Omegas within the Butterfly Estate, surely—”

“Giyuu-san!”

Giyuu stiffened at the change of Tanjirou’s tone. Although it was only for a split second, Giyuu had felt a dangerous sensation coming from the Alpha.

“Please don’t belittle my feelings for you." Tanjirou breathed out slowly as if trying to control something inside him from bursting out. “The one I love is you, Giyuu-san, and that won’t change.”

“…It wasn’t my intension to belittle your feeling.” Giyuu explained, eyes still refusing to meet the Alpha. “There are simply better options for you. You’ve become strong, Tanjirou. There’s no need for you to be bound to someone like me.”

“Then why aren’t you looking at me when you say that, Giyuu-san?” Tanjirou demanded.

Giyuu’s hands underneath his sleeves slowly curled into fists. His nails dug into the palm of his hand, leaving small crescent dents from his blunt nails.

The Water Hashira didn’t know how to respond, so he settled with not responding at all. He turned to walk away, but he didn’t get far when a large hand grabbed his, stopping him in his track.

Giyuu turned to see Tanjirou standing behind him, his grip on his hand tight, but nowhere near painful.

“Tan—”

“I, Alpha Kamado Tanjirou, formally challenge the Water Hashira, Omega Tomioka Giyuu to a duel!”

Giyuu sucked in a sharp breath as he stared at the Alpha as if he had gone crazy. Perhaps he has.

“The location of the duel will be at Oyakata-sama’s manor in one week.”

“Do you know what you’re saying?” The Water Hashira demanded.

“I do.” Tanjirou tightened his grip on Giyuu’s hand. “If you want to reject me, you can ignore my duel request. But if Giyuu-san would give me a chance, I will prove to you that I’m worthy of standing beside you.”

With that, Tanjirou released Giyuu's hand. He turned to leave but seemed to remember something so he looked back to Giyuu who was still rooted to the spot.

"Also, I would appreciate it if Giyuu-san does not insult the person I love.” With that, Tanjirou was gone.

In just matters of seconds, Giyuu knew that Tanjirou had already left the Water Estate.

Tanjirou really did become strong.

Giyuu stared at the empty spot Tanjirou once occupied. He retreated into his room and closed the door. In the darkness of his room, Giyuu leaned back against the shoji and looked down at the hand Tanjirou had held. He could still feel the lingering warmth of the Alpha on his skin.

After fighting an inner war with himself, Giyuu hesitantly brought that hand up to his face and took a small sniff.

It was as if a rush of adrenaline had suddenly overcome his body. Giyuu felt his heart pounding faster and his blood boiling inside his veins as his senses were engulfed by the Alpha’s heavy scent. Giyuu let out a sharp gasp as he fell onto his rear. His legs were shaking so badly that he could no longer hold himself up.

The Omega pulled his hand as far away as possible from his face and leaned back against the shoji. To think his body would react so violently at Tanjirou’s scent…something like this should only happen if their bodies were compatible.

Giyuu shook his head to clear his thought.

No, it must be the Heat still affecting his senses.

The Hashira crawled into his futon and pulled the quill over his head. He decided to get some sleep and refused to think any more of this matter.

Unfortunately for him, Tanjirou had no plans to give Giyuu any more time.

The very next day, Giyuu woke to the entire Water Estate in an uproar.

The moment he stepped outside of his room, he was greeted with the entire residence of the Water Estate gathered by his door. They were all looking at their Water Hashira with complicated gazes. Before Giyuu could even ask, Murata stepped up and handed him a letter. The letter was delivered this morning by none other than Tanjirou’s Kasugaigarasu.

On the front of the letter were the words, “Duel Request”.

It was no wonder why all the Kakushis and Murata were looking at their Hashira like that. In their world, duel can only mean one thing.

Tanjirou was challenging Giyuu for his hand in marriage.

Duels were old practices used by Alphas and Omegas in ancient times. Back in those days when power meant everything, the Alpha would challenge Omega in a match to show that they were worthy of standing by their side and become a father to their future children.

Duels must take place under public eyes with other authoritative figures attending to ensure the fairness of the fight. Should the Alpha lose, it means that that Alpha was not worthy of becoming the Omega’s mate and can never go near the Omega ever again.

Nowadays, such an extreme method of courtship was no longer used. Alpha and Omegas would just get together normally like how humans would. Though duels were not used anymore, it wasn’t forgotten. Since Giyuu—a Hashira—would be involved in this duel, then that meant the master of the Corps himself will need to be present, as well as the other eight Hashiras as witnesses.

Murata felt like fainting just thinking about it.

What in the world did that boy learn during these years?! Didn't he know that if he lost, then he could never go near Giyuu again?! No, before that, if Giyuu rejected Tanjirou's duel, then the result will be the same!

“Tomioka-sama!” Gotou stepped up and bowed respectfully at his Hashira. “Will you be…accepting the duel?”

Giyuu opened his mouth, but no words could be formed. The Water Hashira couldn’t find an answer to that.

Was he going to accept?

The Omega stared at the letter in his hand as his heart skipped a beat.

The next couple of days passed by agonizingly slow…but it wasn’t slow enough for Tomioka Giyuu. Since receiving Tanjirou’s challenge, the raven-haired man could be seen sitting in the courtyard every day instead of training.

From early morning to late in the night, he would just…sit there.

No one dared to go near him, nor do they dare to talk around him. Everyone in the Water Estate agreed to not go near the yard unless absolutely necessary. None of them wanted to disturb their Hashira, though that didn’t stop them from peeking at the Omega from afar.

Since then, the entire Water Estate became even quieter than usual.

Aside from eating and sleeping, the Water Hashira was basically a stone statue.

It was fine.

Their Hashira needed to think, they understand.

This was a big decision to make.

The Kakushis all understood that. However, when the fifth day rolled around, they could no longer keep their cool and were starting to panic. There were only two more days, and their Hashira didn't seem like he was going to graduate from being a statue anytime soon.

After a long debate, they threw out poor Murata into the garden. When it comes to these sorts of conversation, it was only natural for Omega to have a heart to heart talk with another Omega.

Murata never wanted to curse these Kakushis so much, yet he knew there was no going back.

“T-Tomioka-san…” He had intended to shout out the Hashira’s name, but the moment his mouth opened, his short-lived resolve crumbled into pieces. In the end, his call to the Hashira was barely louder than a mouse’s squeak. If it was under normal circumstances, even a mouse’s squeak wouldn’t escape Giyuu’s hearing…yet it did.

Giyuu continued to doze off in a trance, completely oblivious to Murata’s approach.

“Tomioka-san…?” Murata called again.

There was still no response.

“Tomioka-san?”

“…”

“Tomioka-san!”

“…”

“TOMIOKA-SAN!!” Murata screamed with all his might, causing the Kakushis hiding in the distance to jump in fright.

Ocean blue eyes blinked as Giyuu moved for the first time since sitting down that morning.

“Murata.” He called the other Omega’s name as if just realizing he was here.

“T-Tomiok-san! D-do you want to t-t-talk?” Murata stuttered, constantly tripping over his words as his heart raced.

Giyuu looked at him, then he looked back to the garden.

Murata stood awkwardly.

What did this mean?

Was this a yes?

Or a no?!

“You met Tanjirou.” Giyuu suddenly said.

Murata blinked. He stared at Giyuu while his head rapidly worked to decipher just what that sentence meant. It took a while, but once he understood, he immediately let out a loud (fake) laugh in hopes that Giyuu wouldn’t notice the momentary silence.

“Y-yeah I did!” He laughed nervously. “Man, I couldn’t believe it when I saw him! He grew up, hasn’t he?!”

Murata sweated as he waited for Giyuu’s response. After what felt like an eternity, Giyuu nodded. Letting out a small breathe, Murata slowly and carefully sat down next to Giyuu—keeping half a meter’s distance of course.

“How do you er…see Tanjirou, Tomioka-san?”

That seemed to be a bad topic to bring up as Giyuu looked down at his hands that were on his lap. His lips slowly turned downward and his brows furrowed.

"Aaah!" Murata shouted while sweating bullets. "Speaking of that night! Tanjirou was…he uh…he was um…"

Murata wrecked his brain to come up with something, but that ultimately failed. Just when he thought this conversation was hopeless, Murata suddenly remembered the look on Tanjirou’s face that night.

The way the Alpha was cradling a dripping wet Giyuu so tightly in his arms with his face filled with worries…he looked like he might cry.

“Tanjirou’s seriously in love with you, Tomioka-san," Murata said without giving much of a thought.

The Hashira looked at his companion in surprise.

“I was scared to death when he came knocking at my room with you in his arms. Since it was dark I couldn’t see properly thought he was a rouge…”

Murata didn’t know whether to laugh or cry at the memory of that night.

Scare was an understatement of the century.

Murata had nearly died from a heart attack when he saw a tall Alpha standing in the dark with an unconscious Giyuu in his arms. Murata was instantly reminded of that day when the Water Estate was under attacked. He screamed before the Alpha could even open his mouth to say anything. In an instant, the entire manor was awake with Kakushis flooding towards them.

And then…well, they all screamed at the sight of an unfamiliar Alpha in the middle of the night holding onto their Hashira. Since Murata was standing at the doorway of his room, his sword was lying beside him. He grabbed his sword while the Kakushis grabbed anything they could use as weapons.

Some picked up rocks while others ripped off branches from a bush nearby…

It took a lot of shouting back and forth (mostly on their end) before they realized that the Alpha was Tanjirou, not some rouge that broke in.

“He was worried because he couldn’t wake you up no matter how much he tried, and with your Heat ended, your body turned cold due to the temperature of the spring. Even after I assured him that you’re fine, Tanijrou insisted on watching over you in case something happens. He sat outside your door for two whole days and nights, waiting for you to wake up.”

“…I see.” Giyuu mumbled softly.

“Well! T-that’s all I have to say! Sorry to disturb you, Tomioka-san!” Murata stammered before running off, leaving Giyuu alone once more.

The next day came and it was bound to be another restless night for all of them. The duel was tomorrow, yet the Water Hashira sat in the garden as usual. None of the Kakushis could even work as they watched at the Omega from the distance with panic written all over their faces.

They all tried to convince themselves that it was alright, that there was still time left.

It may take months for them to travel on foot to the master’s manor, but for an Omega like Giyuu, it should only take two to three hours.

There was plenty of time—or so they told themselves.

As the sun slowly fell and the stars began to shine across the night sky, they were getting more and more worried.

Giyuu still didn’t move.

He was just gazing up to the stars before a hand came up to grip onto the left sleeve of his kimono. It was a gesture of Giyuu’s that everyone in the manor was familiar with. Whenever their Hashira was down or if something was troubling him, he would grip the side of his kimono that belonged to Sabito just like that, as if seeking comfort.

Quietly, the Kakushis exchanged glanced with one another before they shuffled away, leaving Giyuu truly alone for the first time in days.

When morning came, Tomioka Giyuu was no longer in the garden.

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#giyuu x tanjirou #tangiyuu #tanjirou #giyuu #kny fanfic #kny #demon slayer #tomioka giyu #Kimetsu no Yaiba #kamado tanjirō

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