DAMSEL IN DISTRESS • 𝐲𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐤𝐧𝐲 𝐱 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫

seven

CHAPTER SEVEN, am i seriously useless, dream girl?

After a while, you had found the demon. Your footsteps creak against the wooden planks that were the houses flooring, and you look up to see a horrifying sight.

You were ashamed at what you did next, but you stood there.

It was still devouring a small child, ripping limb off body and the muscle off skin. You were scared, scared that you would die here and disappoint Urokodaki-sama, scared that you would lose your friends, and scared that you would die.

It looks towards you, and you manage a small sigh, the sound so soft and so pure against the filth, the blood that stains the floor. The rest is silence, and you know you've passed out.

What's wrong with you?

"Huh?" You gasp, taking a step back , feet hitting against nothing. You look around, a dark, suffocating abyss swirling around you in turn.

I said, what's wrong with you? You promise not to trust or love again, and you do this? You're a filthy hypocrite, Y/N L/N.

Defensive. Words try to rush out of your throat to try and defend yourself, why you're doing this, but nothing comes out, an uncomfortable silence taking its place.

You bring misfortune wherever you go. Your pretty face is a disguise for your disgusting personality.

Their pale hands grip your neck, choking you, consuming you, and you cry out, lash out. "I'm - not! I passed - final selection! Killed demons!" You struggle, but you know they're right. You're nothing more than a liability, after all.

One. You killed one demon, it giggles, tossing you away, and continues to berate you with the truth you've been hiding from.

You're a disgrace to your bloodline, y'know? You could've been so great, it hums, sighing as it swerves behind you.

Its words send a pang of confusion through you, but it's quickly replaced by loathing. "Who are you, anyway? Why..are you saying these things? " you bite out, clenching your fists. The figure blinks in response, its iridescent shine a pearly white against the dark.
Wake up. It warns, tapping a finger against your mouth cryptically, eyes white like blinding sun. Wake up wake up wake up wake up

Tears are in your eyes, something like lemon under your tongue. A burst of flame-red hair is snoring next to you. You look up, fresh mahogany ceiling above. You pant. A cold sweat drops down your forehead and slips to your chin. The chin that it touched. The chin that it held.

You look at Tanjiro's sleeping form, the way his chest rises and falls while he dreams, and smile absently. He's mumbling something, but you're too dazed by fatigue to make out the words.

"It was a nightmare," you whisper quietly, staring at your lap covered by a thick, white blanket. You're safe. You're fine. "Just a nightmare."

You hear voices, one, two, three, four, and possibly a fifth. Words and numbers blue together, a mess of language that you can't unravel. You try to clear your mind with little success. Your dream weighs as heavily on you as your blanket does.

"I'm Y/N," you say hesitantly, testing out letters on your tongue. You lick your lips, only to find them chapped. Your house sounds hoarse. "I'm Y/N, and I'm a demon slayer."

You try to add a spring to your voice , and with newfound energy, you sit up and make a spontaneous decision to go outside.

As you murmur affirmations under your breath, you try your hardest to keep your chin up. Your head feels strangely heavy and a terrible unease runs through your veins like acid. It has told you to wake up, you remember. Not just from the dream.

"Welcome to Rehabilitation Training!" The three girls greet, beaming at you. You smile at them and wave happily, before remembering they're right in front of you. You awkwardly put your hand down.

"We're here to get you back to your missions in full strength, and improve your energy!! Please listen as we describe the activities!!" One of the girls chirps. They're all quite young looking - they can't be more than 10 years old. They're wearing different colours of ribbon around their waist, but otherwise look almost identical.

As they introduce themselves and the activities you'll be required to do, you glance back at the bedroom where Tanjiro and you were sleeping.

"Did I really end up back in the Butterfly Mansion?" you murmur to yourself, listening to the low song of the wind against the windows and the trees. "I need to stop getting injured. It's getting kinda embarrassing."

As your mind wanders, it reaches the same destination, over and over again. Who was that girl? And why do I know her?

A strand of purple hair interrupts your internal monologue. You look up to see one of your newfound friends, idly letting a butterfly rest on her finger.

"Kanao!!!" You wave happily, a wide smile growing on your face. "Kanao, how are you?" The butterfly flies off, panicked as she looks up and her hair flutters to her back.

The others just stare at your sudden outburst, surprised at how familiar you were with the Insect Hashira's tsuguko. Even more surprised at her smile - so gentle and genuine. You race over to her, holding her hands in yours. You did it so often it might as well be ritual.

"Kanao, I just seem to be getting weaker and weaker, y'know?" You sigh, the ongoing training introduction skipping right past you as you chat to the girl. "I failed! Like, on what, two or three missions! I ended up crawling on one of them! This is like, the second time I've been here..I can't even complete one mission on my own!"

Your voice was like angel song to her ears, and she listened to you talk. Completely ecstatic you were talking to her, with her. It seemed almost unreal.
"You're strong," she whispers. She cringes at her own own voice - it sounded so strained and quiet after years of suppressing it, but she continues for you. "I think you're strong, Y/N. Everyone fails once in a while." She looks up at you, struggling to maintain eye contact with yours. I

Your pretty face erupts with emotion a second later, and your arms wrap around her neck. You cling unto the taller girl as you squeal, tears threatening to fill your eyes again. "Wahhhh!! Kanao, thank you so much! I'll try my hardest, just for you! Let's try our hardest together!"

Her face went a bright red, her smile growing at the sensation of your perfect body on hers. Those words you spoke..she'd remember them until she died. You were her angel, she was sure, and you were hers.

|| TAISHO ERA SECRET!

|| Tanjiro actually sleep talks. Those words you couldn't hear were him saying your name over and over again.