Mirrors | T.Muichiro X Reader

♡ | 10 - Scars (pt 2) | ♡

Her answer shocked him. Had she really... done all that to herself?

"I... I'm..." He was lost for words. Nobody had ever taught him what to say in this situation; he had no idea what to do.

"Do you... do you still..." He motioned towards her scars. She smiled at him and shook her head. There was... pride in her eyes.

"No, I vowed to stop doing that. I actually... I stopped last year, when I was 13." She folded her arms and ran her fingers over the bumps on them. Muichiro looked confused.

"But... thats so recently? Why would you- why would you wanna do that to yourself?" It didn't make sense to him, purposely causing pain for yourself. Surely she'd had enough of that in her life, without adding more with her own two hands?...

She looked up above her and sighed. "I was... I was addicted. To the sadness and the pain. I didn't want to be happy. I only wanted to suffer." She paused. "I had been taught to believe that I deserved it, so naturally I was vulnerable."

"But... Y/n... only an evil person could deserve that kind of suffering? You were just a kid?..."

She nodded. "Yes, but nobody ever told me that. You must understand; I was taught to think that way. I was groomed to believe I was worthless, and that my life meant nothing. In my young, foolish mind, I was simply doing what was right."

Muichiro could tell that she no longer wanted to talk about it. He... didn't quite know how to feel. He would have to spend some time trying to understand fully, but he would always support her no matter what.

He was quiet for a bit, thinking about how he could phrase his next question. He seemed to hesitate a little bit, before slowly speaking up again.

"If you don't mind.. what happened to your... mother?" He then asked softly, his voice still sounding quite gentle and sympathetic. She softened up a little. Her mother was someone she never hesitated to talk about. She had always made it her mission to tell her story to whoever would listen, in the hope that history wouldn't repeat itself.

"She was eaten." She mumbled softly. "By a demon. She and my father had been arguing. He... got violent. So she scooped me up in a sash and ran into the woods, hoping to find safety. We were attacked after night fall. I would never have made it if it wasn't for her." She smiled softly. "She buried me alive to hide me from the demon."

"..." Muichiro was quiet for a moment.

Then.. he gently held her face with his free hand, and kissed her cheek. She must miss.. her mother, so much.

"I'm sorry about what happened." He began. "It must feel bad knowing she wouldn't be there for a special day like you becoming a hashira, knowing she couldn't be there to see the remarkable person you've grown up to be."

Then, he gave her a small but reassuring smile. She smiled. He understood her well... Had he also lost a parent to demons?

"Muichiro... what about your family? Are they demon slayers like you?"

I.. don't want to talk about my family. Muichiro thought to himself. Is it really time to talk about something so important already?

He kept stroking her hair, his other hand on her shoulder. Her hair is so soft.. She has such pretty hair. Then, he looked back at her.

"Er- yeah, my.. parents are demon slayers." He was quiet for a moment.

"Actually.. they're the reason I started demon slaying." Muichiro looked slightly away, but kept stroking her hair.

Y/n nodded slowly, but doubt creeped into her thoughts.

Now that I think about it... Didn't Kagaya mention that Muichiro had a brother who died? His parents are demon slayers... So how come his brother was killed by a demon?

She had many questions, but read his body language and understood that the conversation was over. She stroked his hair and held him close, almost as if she was trying to absorb the sorrow out of him.

"We should really get going now, Mui." She blushed. His face when she called him a nickname was so adorable...

He's so precious.

Muichiro slowly nodded, and got up. Then, he helped Y/n sit up. She was still a bit pale, and quite exhausted from the past few days.

Muichiro's eyebrow raised slightly, before smiling gently. "Careful, don't reopen your leg wound."

Then, he gently got off the bed, picking up Y/n by the waist. He lifted her up, making sure her body wasn't touching the ground in the process.

She feels so light in my arms, she's blushing as well... Is it alright if I just.. carry her? Would that be weird? I wouldn't mind it.. but maybe there's a boundary I'm not supposed to cross.

Y/n's eyes were wide.

"W-what are you.." Her voice trailed off, her eyes shining. Inside her chest, her heart pounded.

Ba dump, ba dump, ba dump.

...

Chapter 11 will be published on 20/08/23