𝗕𝗥𝗢𝗡𝗧𝗜𝗗𝗘

05

    
                             ıllıllı   𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙘𝙧𝙤𝙬   ıllıllı

                                      ˏˋ°•*⁀➷

I didn't want to look away. I have never seen anyone.. look like that before. She looked.. almost like nature itself had come to life. I never want to look away from that.

Rengoku hadn't seen Y/N for the rest of the day. She had excused herself and told him where her food was stored, and also relayed that he was more than welcome to stay another night. But after he agreed to it, she scooped up her mask and hid in her room.

So here he was, laying silently, alone with his thoughts in the spare room that Y/N had so graciously offered to him.

He was baffled, though. Seeing her for the first time without her mask. Sure, he hadn't known her for long, but it felt like a revelation. Her E/C and the way the mid-morning sun glimmered in them. Her S/C skin that seemed to gleam with life. And that smile. He swore when he saw that smile, it was like seeing an angel- something like an ethereal being.

Rengoku's heart beat a little faster now whenever he thought of the girl who had welcomed him ever so earnestly into her home.

•••

The next morning, the sky was dark.

"I believe that you can easily become a Hashira!" Rengoku chided happily as the two slowly walked along through the forest. It had taken a bit of convincing from him to make Y/N come back with him to meet his master.

She had made preparations so that her garden would be able to manage itself for a while. She couldn't have any of her plants dying on her. As it turned out, his master's estate was nothing but a half-day journey.

"I think my fellow Hashira would take a liking to you right away, much like how I have!" Y/N kept her eyes forward. Her mask wasn't on her face any more, put simply strapped to the back of her naginata. She felt it useless to even try and hide her face from Rengoku. He had already seen it.

And yet, it were as if he couldn't get enough. Through the corner of her eye, she could see him slipping a few glances at her to study her. His eyes crinkled in the corners whenever he did so.

I can't stand this. I should have made sure my mask was going to stay on for sure. But then again... It was unavoidable.

When the two were sparring, Rengoku had used Unknowing Flame on Y/N. She was able to react and keep her body safe, but that came with the consequence of the strap on the back of her cat mask being sliced clean in half. She was able to stitch it, yes, but it felt nice to have it off in the open. But she couldn't help but feel self-conscious with every little time she caught his eyes.

She wouldn't say a word, though.

"Hey, Rengoku-san?" Y/N looked up at the dim sky. The clouds had closed in and had moved much faster than Y/N had thought they would. The warning smell of fore-rain seemed to pernitrate her senses. She knew it would begin to relentlessly pour sooner or later. "Yes, Chikyuu-san?"

"I wanted to ask about that crow that has been trialing us for some time now... Is it somehow attached to you?" Her eyes fell on the small black body that flapped its wings gracefully in the sky, beautifully coexisting with the sky.

"Ah! That is my Kasugai Crow! He is my messenger and companion on all of my missions." Y/N found that to be rather cute. In no time, she had lifted up her arm, and the bird came and perched itself on her arm. Using the back of her knuckle, she gently stroked his raven feathers.

He nuzzled into her touch, to which Rengoku chuckled at, almost amusingly so. Quirking an eyebrow in query, he smiled fondly at his crow. "I have never seen him willingly show affection to someone so quickly. He never really got close with Mitsuri-chan, either."

"It is very pleasant to finally meet you, Chikyuu-sama." The crow turned to face Y/N as he spoke. To this, Y/N's eyes lit up.

"You.. You can speak! How fascinating!" A cheery, bubbly smile formed its way onto her features as she gushed over the talking crow. She cooed and coddled him, asking random questions that she spat out too fast to even answer. A swelling, fond feeling seemed to well up in Rengoku's stomach. This was new.

Suddenly, Y/N felt a tingle, much like an electric shock travel up and down her spine. To this she quieted and looked up to the sky, inhaling deeply and grinning.

"You know, rain is one of my favorite things in this whole entire world. I love the way it feels and the way it makes me feel. I always sit outside and watch it, and call it childish, but I love to play in it." She was nothing but an abundance of nerves and bustling happiness. This could make up for yesterday.

I need to look on the bright side. I made a friend. I don't think... I have ever had a friend before.

"Hey, Rengoku-san?" She looked to find the fiery man already looking at her. "Just call me Y/N, please. We're friends now, right?" Suddenly, Y/N felt her stomach drop to the ground. Had she really just asked someone to drop the formalities with her after on two days of meeting each other? She felt sick to her stomach. He would never be that hasty to-

"Then it will only make sense if you call me Kyojuro!" His Kasugai fluttered over to his shoulder, craning his neck to the sky, only for a fat drop of rain to fall on its beak. It squawked, being knocked back and nearly falling off of its new perched.

Y/N laughed at the sight of this, along with Kyojuro.

"Alright, Kyojuro-san."

ˏˋ°•*⁀➷