Although she may have reeked of cynicism and anger, one man in the Demon Slayer Corps was able to change that. This is the story about how the Water PIllar was able to make the Insect Pillar fall head over heels for him.
This is an alternate unive...
As we hugged each other tightly, the small slivers of hope for survival dimmed. It slowly approached the dark corner we were hiding in as it muttered about how it would savor our flesh. Right before it was about to attack, an even larger presence appeared behind it, killing it quickly. When the sun rose, we learned about demons and the demon slayers from Himejima, the giant that saved us.
From that day on, Kanae and I swore to use our lives to protect others, to stop others from experiencing what we did. Despite the rigorous training and the seemingly endless missions we went through, the smiles of the people we saved gave us the motivation to continue. However, for me, the strongest driving factor was my sister. Her quiet voice exuding kindness, her smile that made everyone feel safe, just her presence was able to me forget about the past.
I opened my eyes to a light brown ceiling, a quite tacky choice if I say so myself. I was lying on a futon, but it wasn't one used in the Butterfly Estate. There was a lingering scent on the bedding, one that reminded me of Tomioka. Looking to my right, I noticed him leaning against the window.
'Speak of the devil.' Despite the quite mundane scene outside of Tomioka's house, he gazed through the glass pane intently. He looked like the embodiment of tranquility, a pond without any ripples disrupting the smooth surface.
I stared at his face without taking a breath, afraid to be the ripple. Every time I stared at Tomioka, I found a new feature to admire without fail.
Although I had already stored enough mental photos of Tomioka to fill an entire album, I decided to watch him for a bit longer. His eyes seemed more vibrant from the last time I got a good look at them, back at the mansion. He cut his hair recently, but it was only a slight trim. Since he draped his haori over me while I was asleep, his broad shoulders that tapered into his slim waist were visible.
He continued to stare at the landscape, paying no heed to me. As he rested his arms on the window still and laid his chin on his makeshift cushion, his sea-blue eyes seemed to shine beneath the moonlight. They were slightly glazed as he wasn't truly watching the scenery but was rather lost in thought.
His warm breath began to fog up the window, revealing me in the process. Despite taking note of me, Tomioka continued with his silence. Whether it a decision spurred from empathy or indifference, I still appreciated his reservedness. The moment of silence was one to be appreciated, one thing I've taken a liking to after interacting with Tomioka. Even though his lack of speech bothered the other Pillars greatly, it was a breath of fresh air from the suffocating demeanors of my fellow Pillars.
However, there was a limit to how much silence a person could handle. 10 minutes of pure silence went by with the only audible sound being his dog named after me loudly snoring on the floor. I felt my irritation building up by the second, ready to explode at his stoic attitude.
I refrained from shouting in anger, masking it with a smile that clearly exhibited my annoyance. Despite glancing back at me and noticing my visible annoyance, Tomioka still refrained from talking.
"Aren't you going to ask me how I feel?" I asked while grimacing from the pain in my torso. Hearing my comment, Tomioka turned around slowly, his blue eyes drilling into mine. His lips were pulled into a tight, thin line.
He opened his mouth to talk but struggled to find the words. "If... if you're not comfortable talking about it, I'm not going to force you. It's not my job to force you to speak. I don't like speaking myself." His face was as calm as ever, not a single emotion visible on his face.
He hesitated before speaking again, with a much longer pause this time. "But if you want to talk, I'll always be here for you." He looked down for a second before making eye contact again. "I promise."
I had never been one to talk, even when surrounded by family and close friends. Some of my favorite memories were sitting on the porch with Tsutako, listening to her describe her day as the sun fell behind the mountains. Even while training with Makomo and Sabito, listening to their banter was enough for me.
Even after being instated as a Pillar, I never talked to my fellow swordsmen. After all, I was never on the same level as them and I never would be. Iguro and Shinazugawa took the most offense to my silence, seeing it as a sign of disrespect. After a period of verbal harassment, they stopped and left me alone due to Oyakata's orders.
He tried pairing me with multiple pillars, but none of them could tolerate me. Deep inside, I was glad for the rocky relationship I had with the other. Perhaps I would be forced to resign my title of Water Pillar.
It was only Shinobu Kocho, the Insect Pillar, who was able to tolerate me. But this didn't mean I could tolerate her. She constantly poked fun at me during every mission, sometimes physically annoying me as well. But as the days went on, she became the shining light in my dark world. I would find the corners of my lips twitching after hearing her jokes and my mask would drop away for a split second.
So when the sun of my world dims, it's my job to light them back up.
His sudden and bold declaration surprised me, causing me to laugh a bit. "Tomioka, will you really always be there for me?" I asked in a joking tone. For the first time in a long while, I felt a genuine smile form on my face. Tomioka's solemn nodded to answer my question only added to my delight. I laughed out loud, confusing him greatly. He raised one of his eyebrows, but I decided to give the Tomioka treatment and refused to answer. I flopped back onto his futon before closing my eyes.
"I guess if you promise me, I have nothing to worry about Giyu."
I actually wrote another chapter in two weeks 0_o?? I actually wrote half of this last week but was too busy to finish it that weekend. Anyways, thank you all for reading this fanfic and supporting me! I really appreciate every single person who reads this and leaves comments behind. ALSO WE HIT 14K READS! I REMEMBER WHEN I WAS EXCITED TO GET 60 READS ON MY FIRST CHAPTER.
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