❛ :: BUTLER ⇐ {male!reader x kny} (currently under editing)

- - --- ꒰CHAPTER 7꒱

3 years later.

It was another busy day at the Butterfly Mansion. Tanjiro took the tea from Sumi gratefully.

The servant took the cup from him after he had finished drinking, then said with hesitance,

"Master Tanjiro, there's someone who would like to meet you. He's been hiding from you- he's quite shy, but Naho pushed him to talk..."

She paused,

"He does this every time there are new Demon Slayers who come back from missions. I hope he doesn't cause a big disturbance!"

"That's fine!" Tanjiro smiled, "I'd be delighted to meet him!"

As the teenage boy sat in his bed, he realized how much the Rehabilitation Training had taken a toll on him. Every aching muscle seemed to ache harder as he waited for the mysterious guest. Squinting a bit at the pain, he gave his arms a light stretch and yawned.

Finally, the infirmary door opened with a soft creak.

A small boy stood before Tanjiro, clad in a simple kimono and sandals. He seemed barely eight years old, darting his (E/C) eyes about in all directions, as if eagerly looking for something on the ground. In his hand was a tiny, bright purple flower, a notebook, and an ink pen.

Sumi looked displeased. "(Y/N), you better finish whatever you're gonna do real quick, okay? Master Tanjiro needs rest."

"I know..." (Y/N) said in the most timid voice Tanjiro had ever heard. He felt pity rise in his heart. Somewhere deep inside, he realized that this boy had been hurt once, thrown helplessly off the train tracks of his life.

"Hey, hey, is your name (Y/N)? That's a really nice name!"

(Y/N) walked a bit closer to Tanjiro and muttered,"Papa gave me that name."

"I see..."

Tanjiro thought it was odd that a child would confirm that their parents had given them their name.

But then again...

"Well," he said, maintaining his most cheerful voice, "What did you want to talk to me about?"

(Y/N) inched closer to Tanjiro's bed, and in a series of small inches, he arrived at his side, still looking at the ground. The boy opened his notebook and took up an ink brush, as if he were ready to take notes.

"What does it take to kill demons?" he muttered at length, his quiet voice now at a whisper.

The Question: Tanjiro's Thoughts

Tanjiro was aback by this simple inquiry. The infirmary resided in silence.

"U-Uhm...Well..."

What did it take to kill demons?

Tanjiro pondered. It was a question that was always at the back of his mind...and yet...this was the first time he had been confronted face to face with it.

Dauntlessness? Courage? Adrenaline? Strength?

Or maybe...

"Onii-chan!"

"I'm back, Nezuko!"

Tanjiro smiled warmly, "You need a reason." He said to the boy beside him.

(Y/N) was looking up at him with shining eyes filled with alacrity.

"A reason?"

"Yeah...I mean, you need to work hard and everything, but in the end- You need a reason to work hard."

Sounds of a brush moving across paper could be heard by his bedside. (Y/N) seemed to be busily writing down everything Tanjiro had said.

Tanjiro leaned over to get a better look at the note book's contents.

"What's that?"

At this, the (H/C)-haired boy pulled the notebook closer to him, hiding it from Tanjiro's sight.

"Nothing." He said shyly.

"C'mon!" Tanjiro pushed him; partly out of curiosity and partly because of- well, it seemed like the boy needed someone to open up to. "Why, is there some magical secret stuff in there?"

"..."

"Yes. There's magical secret stuff in here."

"Eh?" Tanjiro grinned, "I wanna see too!"

"Uhm-"

The Notebook: Incidents

The infirmary door slid open a second time. Sumi had returned.

Her gaze went from Tanjiro to (Y/N), to the notebook, and back to Tanjiro.

"If you wanna know what's in the notebook," she said softly, "It's just stuff that (Y/N) writes down when he interviews Demon Slayers."

(Y/N) blushed and said angrily, "S-Sumi! Don't give it away!"

"But Master Tanjiro wanted to know!"

"But it's my notebook!"

"You know what? I'm gonna show it to Master Tanjiro!" Sumi raised her voice, "Give it to me!"

"No!"

A curious cat-fight occurred before Tanjiro's eyes as both Butterfly Mansion Servants tried to wrestle the notebook out of each other's hands.

"G-Guys..." Tanjiro stammered from his bed.

At last, Sumi had grasped the note book and tried to deliver it to Tanjiro...

"Stop!" (Y/N) yelled.

-Slam!

"Ara~ Ara~ Don't fight! Be respectful to our guest!"

The two children were torn apart by none other than Kocho Shinobu. The notebook fell to the ground, opening itself to Tanjiro.

A page full of almost illegible scrawlings with terrifically incorrect spelling was spread before him They all seemed to depict an answer to the question Tanjiro had been asked earlier, and a name accompanied by it.

Among them, one caught Tanjiro's eye.

------------------------------------------------

kanao's reeson=master's orders

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Tanjiro stared at the piece of writing, then lifted his head to see (Y/N) stomping out of the room.

Shinobu gave him an apologetic smile.