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

Part 4!!: Pieces Of Me

You are a demon.

Embrace who you are.

You can't go back.

You should be grateful I even accepted you into our ranks.

Wake up, Zenitsu. Open your eyes to reality.

You are no longer human.
.
.
.
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Zenitsu woke up in cold sweat. His breaths were heavy and his eyes frantically scoured the room. There was no one there. It was just a dream- A nightmare.

He realized he held a tight grip on the sheets of his futon and released it, only to find torn fabric. He stared at it with his mouth agape, then held his palm in front of his face. His nails were much longer and sharper than before.

"Why...?" Zenitsu muttered to himself. "Why am I...?!" He tore his gaze away from his hand. There's no use thinking about it. No, there's no use at all.

"Tanjirou?" He called out, hoping the raven-haired boy was in close vicinity to him. Though, it's probably a miracle if he was.

Instead, something else responded to his call. The box Tanjirou always carries around shook and swayed before opening to reveal Nezuko.

If it was a regular day, Zenitsu would feel better seeing her lovely face. But he didn't. He only stared at her, perhaps if he stared hard enough, she would turn into Tanjirou. But obviously it wasn't possible.

He sighed, rubbing his temples together. His head was filled with odd thoughts. To eat. To kill. To maim. He shook those thoughts away but to no avail. There was nothing but those intrusive voices.

Nezuko noticed his unease and walked towards him. She sat next to him on the floor and tried to console her friend by making odd hand gestures. Zenitsu appreciated her trying to help, really. He forced a smile on his face, though Nezuko knew it wasn't genuine.

"Nezuko, can I ask you a question?" He whispered, his voice thin. "It's about... being a demon."

Nezuko nodded and the two shared a moment of silence before Zenitsu heard something.

'Ask away,' The voice he heard told him. At first, he was a bit taken aback, but then he realized it was the sound of Nezuko's mind talking. He had a talent for hearing, and if he tried hard enough, he could hear the voices of their thoughts. It seemed like turning into a demon enhances your sense of hearing. 'Ah, you can hear me?' Nezuko asked. The blonde merely nodded but it made the she-demon beam. 'It has been a while.'

Zenitsu's lips curled into a gentle smile. "I guess it has."

'What did you want to ask me?'

His smile slowly vanished, and he stared into the distance rather than to Nezuko. "When you turned into a demon, what did you feel?"

She thought for a bit before answering. 'I was scared. But I knew my brother was going to save me."

"You trust Tanjirou that much, huh?" Zenitsu questioned. He thought Nezuko would get offended at the remark, but instead, she giggled.

'Yes, I do.'

"And you've never doubted him for even a second?"

Nezuko stopped. She thought for a while, then shook her head. 'I had times when I thought, can he really pull this off?' She started, playing around with her hair. 'But every time I think that, he always succeeds.'

"That's... that's great."

She cocked her head to the side and gave her full attention to Zenitsu. 'It seems like you still have something on your mind.'

The blonde took a deep breath. He nodded and Nezuko listened. At least, she tried to. But there were no words that came out of Zenitsu's mouth. She nudged his shoulders and shot him a concerned look.

'Zenitsu?'

Oh. 'The two siblings have similar eyes,' Zenitsu realized.

"I..." His voice was soft and low. Only Nezuko could hear him now. "I don't know if I can bear being a demon."

Nezuko's lips curled into a frown. Now, Zenitsu was gazing at the floor and she didn't know what to do.

'I know it's hard, but at least try to live," Nezuko finally answered. 'Even if it's not for yourself. You have to live for others.'

"Maybe so," He hummed. "But sometimes I think of things..."

'What things?'

"Things like..." He shifted his posture. Slowly, he turned his head to face Nezuko. "Like..." His mind drifted away. The expression on his face was sad- worrying. Nezuko placed her hands on top of his, reassuring him.

"Like..." He tried again, biting his lip. He looked the other way- away from Nezuko's gaze.
"Like how much better the world is if I just went away right now."

'That just isn't true.'

"But I've caused nothing but bad luck to everyone," He lamented. "I'm just not needed here."

'That may be what you think,' Her hand was no longer gripping his, only slightly touching. 'But if you weren't here then I would be sad,' Her words made Zenitsu flinch, then he sighed. 'And maybe my brother would have a harder time against those demons, hehe.' Her laughter made Zenitsu relax a bit. Nezuko awaited his response while twirling her fingers along on the ground.

"Thank you, Nezuko," Zenitsu spoke, he was conflicted and this conversation just felt like a pity party for him. He didn't know what he wanted. To be killed or to live. Though, just being alive made him feel all kinds of disgust. All he wanted now is for all the lies to stop. "You're very kind," He shot her a sorrowful smile.

'I am not kind,'  She answered.

'But you should be kinder to yourself.'

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author's note :
oh this is a bit shorter than usual, sorry!
most of this is just dialogue and tanjirou didnt even appear here,,, for all u nezuko stans i apologize bc i think i did her dirty here 😔