Our Halcyon Days || Reader x Tanjiro | RESUME 2022!

* f o r t y - s i x *

~ T a n j i r o ~

'I hope you reunite soon.'

The moment the door closed behind him, the boy clutched onto his other arm, pressing his nails into his skin.

"Haah..."

Being in the same room with her was too much to bear, as was lying to her face, so he had left promptly. The last thing he wanted was for her to see him struggle to contain emotions that should not have existed.

In the end, he'd chosen. And many of the others had agreed--

(L/n) (Y/n) would not be told the truth.

She was promised a life of happiness. A world where she never picked up a blade, nor watched her parents and hometown perish before her eyes. A world where the burns etched into her body held no gruesome significance.

She would retire the Corps without knowing any better.

'If you truly love her, you'll keep her from the truth. And you will never seek me out.'

Ren's words weighed heavily on Tanjiro, and he detested them. He wished he had a retort for the demon that night. He wished he had some way to find him.

Yet all that was left for Tanjiro to do was accept the new reality.

It was as Giyu said all those years ago. The weak had no rights or choices, and there were no exceptions.

...At least she'll be safe.

In the middle of the night, there was no where else for Tanjiro to go besides his own ward. It was in complete disarray, and he didn't think he'd properly slept in ages. The newly-washed nightclothes that lay neatly on his bed looked jarringly out of place. He no longer felt comfortable being out of uniform.

Nezuko lay absentmindedly on the floor, her pale arms loosely wrapped around the three ancient books that were uncovered in the ruins.

"Nezuko."

His exhaustion didn't stop him from giving her a smile. She perked up and set the books aside, shuffling over to Tanjiro and giving him a tender hug. He returned it and patted her back.

After a few seconds, she let go and offered the books to him. He held back from grimacing.

"Thanks for looking after these, Nezuko. But I don't think we'll need them anymore."

The little demon tilted her head questioningly and set them down again. His eyes shifted to the two abandoned knives, wrapped in a soft brown cloth. A million regrets replayed in his head once more.

Those too.

Tanjiro reached over and rested his hand on the fabric.

She would've been excited to learn about these. Maybe I should do it in her stead.

He had just lifted the cloth to unveil the blades when his hand froze.

However faint, the shrill sound of two swords clashing had reached his ears.

Nezuko had heard, too--she shot up immediately, pupils dilated in alarm, veins strained and protruding from the sides of her temples. Grabbing Tanjiro's wrist and pulling him to his feet, she dispelled his shock.

There's no mistaking it. It came from the direction of her room!

He blinked hard in concentration, trusting Nezuko to lead him along. With his next breath he expanded his lung capacity to its limit, tuning his body to the optimal breathing pattern.