Demon Slayer One-Shots (Part 2)

Broken (TanjiroxKanao)

A/N: What do you guys think? 

It was the spring. 

The flowers were blooming, and the birds were chirping, and the sounds of laughter filled the air. 

Yet something was missing.

People were missing. 

Thousands had lost their lives in the fight against Muzan. Several of the Hashira had been brutally murdered, or they had succumbed to their injuries. 

"Kanao-chan, what are you doing here? The others are visiting the Kamado's house. I though you'd join them." the former Water Hashira interjected into her thoughts. 

She shook her head, although she gave a weak smile to respond to his question. Settling next to her, Tomioka sighed and leaned back. 

"Do you miss her?" he asks. Turning towards him, she gave him a curious look. One that didn't completely understand. 

"Shinobu. Your sisters."

She had never heard him speak so informally about her sister. He had always been respectful. 

Aloof, but respectful. Shinobu-sama tended to talk fondly about him and their missions together. 

"I... miss her. They didn't deserve to-" 

"Kochou didn't deserve any of that..." he agreed somberly. 

"Still, Kanao-chan, you should be out with the others. It's not very often that you get to escape the Butterfly Mansion. And Aoi-chan." he laughed to himself. 

He seemed... relaxed. 

It was like a large weight had been lifted from his shoulders. Like he had set it down because he didn't need to carry it anymore. 

"You're right. I should go." she stood up, and surprisingly, it was easy. It was easier without carrying the weight of her sword on her hip. 

She didn't have to kill those demons. 

...

It was dark now. Though it was spring, the cold and chill of the evening still managed to freeze her fingertips. She knew that she was close to where Nezuko-chan said they were going to go. 

What if they had left the house already? 

What if Giyuu-san had given her the wrong directions?

She panicked. 

"Kanao?" 

She whipped around, finding Tanjiro staring at her. Her haori, which was clutched tightly around her person, suddenly felt light. 

"O-Oh~ Tanjiro, I-" 

His presence was light. He wasn't expecting her to be here. She had probably intruded into their private lives. Something that only Inosuke and Zenitsu-kun were included in. 

"I-I'm sorry, I-" 

"No, Kanao-chan, it's quite alright. I didn't mean to startle you," he reassured her, giving her one of those bright, kind smiles that she loved so much. 

"Remember! It's the heart that drives people." 

Yes. 

He was right. 

She could feel her heart. She could feel her heart beat as she looked at him. 

"What are you doing here, Kanao? I thought you were back at the Butterfly Mansion with Giyuu-san and Aoi-chan." he smiled fondly at their names. 

"Ah, yes, I was, and then I..." she trailed off. 

The voice he had used with her was so kind and gentle. He wasn't distressed or angry that she was here. She enjoyed his grin, his laugh, his touch. 

When he looked at her again, his gaze fell into one of concern. 

"Kanao? You look pale." he rushed forward, though in his haste, he tripped over a rock, dropping what he had been holding and flying towards her. 

She should've seen him coming. 

CRASH. 

"Kanao!" he frantically looked down. She was pinned beneath him, between the solid, yet moist earth, and his body. 

He was warm, the epitome of everything she had wanted ever since he had first looked into her eyes. 

She caught herself. 

She was staring at him. 

"Kanao...?" he asked, softer than before. 

She didn't seem concerned about herself. 

Quite the contrary. 

Instead, she was looking at him, surveying his forehead, which had a bruise on it. She look down, realizing that he was struggling to keep his balance. His arm, which was deformed from the attack by Muzan, was bending under the pressure. 

She was worried. Beyond worried. 

Tanjiro let out a small scream, before he shifted his weight and collapsed to her side. 

"Tanjiro!" she cried out. Luckily, he had not fallen on his bad arm. He winced at the pain. Surely it would leave a bruise or some kind of mark. 

"Are you all right? I'm sorry, I hesitated!" she apologized, and she was now above him. He smiled reassuringly. 

"No, no, I didn;t get hurt. Everything's fine. In fact, you're here, so how could it not be?" he smiled kindly at her. 

Kanao blushed a deep red, so much that she could rival that of a tomato. 

"And-" 

She was cut off and Tanjiro pushed forward, his lips landing on hers. TO not make him strain himself, Kanao gently laid his head back onto the earth, and she kissed him gently. 

He was warm. 

He cupped her cheek, tilting her head ever so slightly, to capture everything that she had been piling in at the moment.

"Why-" she began, but he looked at her so tenderly that she didn't even question why she felt this way. 

"I love you, Kanao." he said softly. 

He said it, quietly enough so that only she could hear, but... 

It sounded so loud. That the entire world could hear it. 

And for once, she was fine with that. 

She was fine with the world knowing that Tanjiro loved her. 

Because she loved him too.