Luminous (KNY X READER)

Thirteen

You and Tanjiro leave the man's house early in the morning, waving goodbye as Tanjiro carries you on his back while you carry the empty coal basket. Neither one of you speak as he makes the trip back up the mountain, simply enjoying the early morning silence.

When Tanjiro suddenly stops as his body stiffens up, you call his name in a questioning tone only to be startled when he starts running. You can tell from his erratic breathing that he's panicked though you have no idea why. You try calling out to him again only to be ignored.

Once Tanjiro reaches his home, he quickly yet gently sets you on your feet before rushing off. You waste no time kicking off your getas and pulling your socks off, allowing your bare feet to rest on the snow covered ground. Your breath hitches when you sense the motionless bodies of his family, two outside while the rest are inside.

Dashing after Tanjiro, you drop to your knees next to Nezuko, able to feel signs of life from her. Unfortunately she's the only one. As much as you don't want to, you pull the deceased child from her arms, setting him aside with whispered apologies before you pull Nezuko into your arms.

"Tanjiro!" You call out, voice cracking slightly in desperation. "Nezuko is still alive! We need to get her to a doctor!"

Tanjiro instantly comes stumbling out of the house where he was looking over the rest of his family members corpses. He quickly takes Nezuko from your arms and you try your best to help position her on his back. Once she's secure, you follow Tanjiro as he begins to rush down the mountain, glad that you took the getas off so you can keep up with him.

Tanjiro gives his sister reassurances the entire time up until she wakes up. You listen as she growls and thrashes, your mind automatically thinking of the worst case scenario. Nezuko has been turned into a demon. You've never seen or interacted with a demon before so it's shocking that the first is sweet Nezuko who always made you feel welcomed.

She doesn't deserve a fate like this. All you can think of is how you can't release her from this curse due to not having a sword since Yoriichi took his with him when he disappeared. Instead you simply have to try and keep her from killing her brother until the sun rises.

With a sudden jerk, Tanjiro and Nezuko fall to the side, dropping further down the mountain. Panicking, you jump after them, knowing it'd be hard to find them otherwise. Plus, with Nezuko being a demon every second matters. One wasted moment could cost Tanjiro's life.

Landing roughly on your feet, you stumble slightly before managing to regain your balance. Worried that you might've been too late, you try your best to sense the things around you. You can feel Tanjiro near you laying on his back, while Nezuko stands a bit further away from the two of you.

"Tanjiro? Are you hurt?" You question softly, not moving as you try to keep your focus on Nezuko's form.

The boy unfortunately ignores you, too concerned about his sister to notice anything else. With a gasp he sits up quickly, head swiveling to the side as he looks for her. "Nezuko!"

"Nezuko!" He calls out again as he stands up to move closer to her despite your warnings. "Are you alright? You shouldn't be up! Let me carry you into town!"

His words are only met by a growl as Nezuko lunges at him, trying to bite him. Luckily he brought an axe with him that he uses to keep her back, lodging it between her sharpened teeth. You're not entirely sure what's going on but you know you can't just stand there and do nothing.

With quick steps you rush forward, tackling the growing girl off of her brother. She growls and snaps her jaws at you as you wrestle with her on the ground, trying your best to pin her down. Despite having not yet consumed anyone she's still extremely strong.

It also doesn't help that you still see her as Nezuko, the sweet girl that never saw you differently and always included you in the things she was doing. It's like your mind knows she is no longer human, but your heart refuses to accept it.

No amount of training could prepare you for a moment like this. A moment where someone you care greatly for becomes the very thing you're supposed to kill. What are you supposed to do? Are you supposed to ignore that you know who they are as you end their life? Pretend that it's a stranger facing you?

No, you couldn't possibly do that. As much as you want to put Nezuko out of her misery, you know you'd never actually be able to lift a blade towards her. You'd never be able to make the move to sever her head from her body. You'll do everything you can to protect Tanjiro, but killing his sister isn't something you can do.

Sensing someone quickly approaching, you quickly grab Nezuko and force her off of you, throwing her towards Tanjiro who barely manages to catch her in his arms. You flinch as you feel a rush of air from a sword swinging over you right where Nezuko had been.

"Why do you protect her?"

~~~~~~~~~
🔆TAISHO SECRETS🔆

🔅You threw Nezuko aside without caring that you could get hurt instead

🔅Tanjiro was terrified when he saw how close the blade got to you but was thankful that you protected Nezuko