Let Me Down Slowly (Kamado Tanjirou x Agatsuma Zenitsu from Demon Slayer)

Part 2: Not Fair

It's been a week since Zenitsu turned into a demon. The corps held a conference about it between the pillars. Aside from being his friend, Tanjirou didn't have any close relations to the blonde, thus he wasn't present in the meeting. The good news was, the corps announced Zenitsu incapable of any harm, given that his actions were monitored.

Tanjirou and Nezuko were out for a mission on the outskirts of the island, so they haven't gotten a chance to see Zenitsu yet. The pair of siblings were, of course, anxious to meet the newly turned demon. Tanjirou, in particular, wanted Zenitsu to meet Tamayo. Perhaps she could help Zenitsu return to normal.

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Zenitsu's actions took Tanjirou by surprise. Tanjirou half expected Zenitsu to whine, or maybe turn a bit feral like Nezuko. But nothing. Zenitsu did nothing.

He didn't eat, He didn't sleep, He didn't even move. The tsuguko in the Butterfly Estate tried everything in the book. They tried to feed him, tried to take his clothes off, but they all ended the same. No reaction.

As Tanjirou paced slowly towards him, he called out Zenitsu's name. The only reply that was given was a blank stare and a blink. "Zenitsu?" He tried again. But alas, no response. The taller boy sighed and sat in front of him. 'Don't his feet hurt from sitting around too much?' He thought, growing curious. "Do your feet hurt from sitting around too much?" He asked, but the blonde didn't reply.

"Did you know? Nezuko and I went to the sea a while back," Tanjirou announced, laughing as he recalled the scene where Nezuko played around in the water. "It was great! I wish you could've been there," His eyes were wandering around the room. His head slowly envisioning the roof as the bright sunny sky, and the wooden floors as the warm, silky sand sticking to their skin. "There were bugs everywhere! Oh, maybe you wouldn't like it," Now, his hands were gesturing all over the place. "But I think you would love it there! The fish there were delicious, way different from the ones you find in the river," Tanjirou's gaze went back to Zenitsu's. His eyes gently softened, but he quickly furrowed his brow in response to his chatting partner's silence. "Are you fine here, Zenitsu?"

There was a moment where the two spoke and did nothing. But surprisingly, Zenitsu turned his gaze outside to the window. Tanjirou flinched at the sudden movement and followed the blonde's motion. Outside, the sun was covered by the clouds, and the howling wind caused the trees to sway back and forth. "It's going to rain soon," Zenitsu spoke, much to Tanjirou's shock.

"I... Yeah. I think so too," Tanjirou snapped his head back to look at Zenitsu. "I think so too," His lips curled into a gentle smile.

"Thanks for visiting me, Tanjirou. Inosuke came too, yesterday. You guys didn't have to do this," His eyes were still fixed to the window, but his breath slowly hastened.

"Zenitsu?" Tanjirou's smile faded away, and he shifted himself to get closer to the boy in front of him. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, Tanjirou."

He frowned. "No. No, you're definitely not."

"Yes, I am," Zenitsu sighed. He covered his face with his right hand, his left one still on his lap. His head slowly turned back to Tanjirou's. "I just... I need some space for a while."

"...Okay." Tanjirou grunted and promptly stood up. "I'll always be there for you, you know?"

"I know."

Tanjirou turned his back around, He took light steps towards the exit, but he had a feeling. A feeling something terrible would happen to Zenitsu were he to leave. He glanced behind his shoulders just as he was grasping the screen's handle. Zenitsu was still there, his hand still stuck to his face. But the other hand slowly rose up to his face to accompany the left one. "Zenitsu...?" Tanjirou muttered under his breath before walking back to the blonde. "Hey, come on, what's wrong?" He asked, his body leaning down.

"I'm not... I..." Zenitsu whispered. "I don't know."

"You don't know? What does that mean?"

"I meant... I don't... I don't think I know." Tanjirou slowly removed Zenitsu's hand from his face and held it to his own. Contrary to what Tanjirou expected, Zenitsu's eyes were completely dry.

Tanjirou grunted to catch Zenitsu's attention, and when the blonde stared back at those red eyes, those soft, gentle-looking eyes, he couldn't turn his gaze away. Slowly, Tanjirou's lips curled into a smile while Zenitsu's curled into a pout. "Tell me everything, please," The raven-haired boy muttered, he tightened the grip he had on the smaller boy's fingers. "I can't help you if you don't cooperate."

"I'm sorry," Zenitsu's brown eyes turned glassy, threatening to spill tears. "I'm sorry," He repeated.
"I'm sorry I was such a failure. I'm sorry I couldn't fight well. I'm sorry I..." Zenitsu gulped. The words he thought of couldn't leave his throat, and he broke his gaze from Tanjirou. "I'm sorry I turned into a demon."

"Oh, Zenitsu... It wasn't you faul-"

"But it is. It is my fault. I could've easily killed myself back there but I didn't."

Hearing that, Tanjirou slowly untangled his fingers from Zenitsu's. The blonde weakly complied, his body showing no resistance to anything Tanjirou did. Now, Zenitsu wasn't looking at Tanjirou, and Tanjirou wasn't looking at Zenitsu. His head laid low, and his eyes can only capture the image of the details of a wooden floor. Tanjirou felt useless. His friend was right in front of him, suffering, yet he could do nothing to fix it.

"I'm sorry," Zenitsu said, a bit softer and quieter this time. How many times has he said those words? The strands of hair covering his eyes were swept by the winds from outside. A drizzle of rain could be heard falling down, slowly quickening. The light filtering from the curtains disappeared, the only source of light now was two, dim candles. Tanjirou held his breath, his heart was on his stomach, and his eyes were blurring with tears.

"I'm sorry too."

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author's note :
did this chapter seem dark and somber? i hope it does bc i want it that way.
zenitsu does seem a bit ooc here but when u turn into a demon, the world doesnt exactly stay the same. dont worry!! he'll go back to his.. usual self in a couple chapters (and inosuke will make an appearance!!!)

*edit : I AM SO STUPID. i can't believe i let zenitsu stay in a room with OPEN WINDOWS. yall i cant,,, at least it was cloudy in this scene but still?? i dont know if im going to change any of these but i think i should let u all know how dumb i can be