My Brightest Flame (Rengoku X Reader)

Chapter 49 - Louder

A/N: 2 chapters left! I've always wondered if Kyojuro would still say umai if his food was poisoned, like a cooking error type of thing. I guess we'll never know! Enjoy!

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The next morning, y/n assumed, was the busiest yet. People were running around constantly, ignoring her fully. She understood as this was a big moment. Tonight they would attack, they had to be quick before they lost his trail again. Because of how intense this day would be, she understood when her meal was also missing. Her stomach growled however, not happy about it. Aware that no one would be letting her out until night fell, she took it upon herself to continue what she had been doing previously. Battering the wall as she focused on developing her new skills. The bloodstains on it weren't that nice to look at, but she didn't care. This would be her last day here and then she could be free again...Well, maybe. She might die in the end purely because she was part demon, she hoped that she would live.

The day went by just like that, with her practicing while people kept moving. Her meals weren't missing but had been consistently late. So by dinner, the latest of them all, her body ached for more meals. The hunger for humans was still there, but she was able to control it and having normal food helped. She hoped that the next meal would come soon. When it did, she smiled brightly, as it appeared with her favourite person within the corps.

"Kyojuro!" Y/N spoke happily, running forward to him and pulling him into a tight, suffocating hug. It caught him off guard as he gasped before laughing lightly. Just like Mitsuri, his hands were filled with mass amounts of food, somehow he was able to balance six. It was impressive. Their stomachs both growled just at the smell of all the meals.

"I missed you too, y/n." The flame hashira replied affectionately, unable to return any contact since his hands were full. "Today is the day!" Y/N nodded in response, backing away.

"Are you nervous?" She teased, helping him place the food down on the edge of her bed. There was nowhere else as this prison wasn't really designed for humans.

"Actually, yes...I'm afraid that we won't survive. If I lose you again..." It was rare that Kyojuro would let such uncertainty show, but y/n always managed to weaken his barriers and get him to share what he truly felt. "I can't even think about it, the possibility of it hurts too much..." The demon-human hybrid gave him a supportive hand on the shoulder, both of them knowing it was unlikely that they would make it. Especially for y/n, as a demon, she could only hope the experimental cure she took would save her.

"It will be okay." She couldn't even believe her own words.

"Yes, you're right." He smiled back, also struggling to believe that everything would work out. "Now, let's eat! Let's make it a challenge. I bet I can shout "umai" louder than you!" The demon grinned, her overly sharp fanged teeth showing themselves. She accepted the challenge.

And together they did just that, yelling the same word after each bite of food, each trying to be louder than the other. If the demon slayers that passed them by weren't too busy or focused on the major task at hand, they would have grown annoyed of the constant yelling quickly. Luckily, there was too much stress going on, and even if there wasn't, there was nothing they could do to stop the two hashira from continuing their competition.

"Aw, I wanted to be the loudest!" Y/N muttered quietly in defeat, a playful pout on her face. The food was finished faster than either of them expected and in the end, Kyojuro was the loudest when expressing his appreciation for the meals he had. He let out a booming laugh in response to y/n, who had quickly began smiling herself after hearing his cheerful tone. Any concerns they had of the night upcoming had completely left them, as they had given themselves too much fun for it to be a concern.