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

Part 9: The Breath of a Baleful Unease

Tanjirou made his way through the snowy roads. It was noon, but the sun already hid in the thick gray clouds. 'It's going to rain soon,' Tanjirou recalled Zenitsu's words from months ago. He shook his head, trying to rid of his thoughts. Lately, he found himself hearing echoes of Zenitsu's past conversation with him. Sometimes it made him lose focus, sometimes it made him feel like he has someone to go home to.

For whatever reason, Tanjirou felt like he needed to be there for Zenitsu. Ever since Zenitsu became a demon, Tanjirou felt a sense of responsibility, especially since he was the one who first found him in that state. But Zenitsu has been growing more and more dependent to Tanjirou, like a younger brother or even a... lover? Tanjirou shook away his thoughts. They weren't like that.

As he was walking, his crow flew overhead. Tanjirou watched as it flew higher and higher, only to swoop back down in an aerial flip and finally perch down in Tanjirou's shoulders proudly. "Caw! Caw! Make your way to the east!"

Tanjirou mocked a salute. "Aye aye! What's there?"

"Caw! They say people have been disappearing left and right! A large silhouette of a two-headed monster is always sighted near a disappearance!"

"A two-headed demon..." Tanjirou quickened his pace, then began to jog, then he sprinted as quickly as he could.

"Caw! Scratch that, I got new information!"

"Huh?"

"A two-headed demon was sighted... alongside another beastly looking demon!"

"There are two?!" He exclaimed, almost falling over in shock.

"Two demons! Two demons! In the east! Quickly, head to the east!"

Tanjirou nodded and continued to run.

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Tanjirou arrived at his destination a couple of hours after his crow's announcement. It was a fairly big village. The roads were wide and the buildings were tall. Because of the heavy snow, a lot of people took shelter inside their homes. Those who were outside, however, were anxious about the rumor of a man-eating monster. Tanjirou interrogated a few bystanders about the events that were occurring in the village. Though, the villagers only provided little information as the demon's identity or routine hasn't been made public or even spread through rumors. These demons were very crafty.

As sly as they were, though, Tanjirou managed to locate them by smell alone. He followed an intriguing scent until it stopped in front of a large, wooden mansion. The building was more isolated than the other houses in the village. It was huge, and surrounding it was wooden fences with spikes on top to prevent robbers. Needless to say, it was quite menacing.

Tanjirou walked up to the door and knocked. There was no answer. He tried knocking again but then his hand froze when he heard a blood-curling scream from inside.

"Apologies," He muttered before he kicked the door open and dashed inside. It was obvious the moment he stepped on the mansion's area. From the putrid smell and the dying plants, this place was a demon's den.

Another shriek appeared from above Tanjirou's head. His head instantly snapped to the direction of the voice. Suddenly, a shadow crashed out from the second floor of the mansion, landing on a bush of white flowers. Tanjirou ran to inspect it, only to see a corpse of a man- the lower part of his body was severed.

The blood spilled from the body, staining the surrounding area red. Tanjirou offered the corpse a brief prayer then searched the mansion's exterior for an entrance. He ran around in circles, trying to find some sort of door. He ended up in the same spot the corpse laid.