~BRAVE~ (Tanjiro X Reader)

Fall

"Diakoku had connections. I never asked him about it when he said that we were being sent to take the exams. That was...two years ago?" Nezuko and I drew on the sand with our fingers her eyes were sparkling when she saw the cute dog drawing I made. Unfortunately, the wind blew it away.

Nezuko tensed and her eyes grew sharp as she looked off into the distance. Tanjiro took noticed and sniffed the air.

"We have visitors." Inosuke said, slamming his fist together before grabbing the swords at his sides. I clutched my own sword in anticipation. Unlike them, I couldn't sense demons. The only real ability I had was to read them. Every breath they took is registered into my brain. Every twitch and blink is recorded. The air stayed silent with the exception of the howls of the wind. Zenitsu stayed behind. His own sword was drawn but his hands were shaking.

"Who do we have here hmm?" A voice had said right into my ear. Zenitsu backed up in shock at the new form standing right next to me. The rest of our group turned around, shaken up that they hadn't seen him sooner. Was he the teleportation demon? I couldn't seem to remember what he, or she for that matter, had looked like. "How delicious you look." He drooled, playing with my hair by wrapping it around his finger. I hadn't even breathed.

Inosuke had immediately swung his blades at the demon and growled in anger. "Where did you even come from!?"

"Don't be mad, darling I'm just admiring what I would be eating later. Tell me love how old are you?" His finger reaches up to his chin and licked his lips in excitement.

"No need to say. You won't be eating your fill tonight." I took ahold of my sword. The moon made my eyes glare in a different way.

"Heights...I see, here we go then." The demon clapped its hands and the ground beneath me began to crumble. I managed to step around to avoid falling. then, the ground dropped at least a mile down. My eyes widened as I stood on a narrow space with Tanjiro. I began to sweat profusely and I couldn't breathe. I reached for the nearest thing I could find. Almost falling when I desperately grabbed onto Tanjiro.

"Fears huh? That's a dirty move." Tanjiro said. He looked around at the bottom to spot Nezuko, Inosuke, and Zenitsu trying to get up the thin layer of wall that we were standing on. He was using one hand to try to support me to not fall, and the other to grip his sword tighter.

Tears pricked at the corner of my eyes. Taking one step, my foot slipped and Tanjiro had caught me right before I fell back. The demon laughed at my scared figure.

"I'm gonna need you to wrap your legs around my front. I can't drop Nezuko's box or it'll break and I haven't put it down yet." He said. A piggy front ride? Is that what I was supposed to call it? In the moment I obliged with fear. I did as he said. My breath hitched as Tanjiro's hand tightened around my waist. My chest was pressed up against his as I held on to him tightly, too scared to let loose a little. I tilt my face to the side ever so slightly taking a look at what seemed like an endless void that lay below. The demon was agile and smart to look into fears. I was terrified.

My eyes widened at the void and I squeezed them shut hoping for all of this to just go away. My face burrowed further into Tanjiro's neck. Sensing my distress his hand around me squeezed a bit before diverting his attention on his balance and the angle of his sword. "Just focus on me." He said.

I couldn't tell if he was talking to me or the demon. Not only was I terrified, but I was flustered due to how pressed up I was against Tanjiro. I began shaking a bit and I didn't know if it was because of the height or how I could feel every muscle on Tanjiro as he moved.

His feet shuffled as he moved closer to the demon, careful not to fall making sure I was secure in his arms. The closer he got to the demon, the more scared I was of falling. I could hear Zenitsu's protest at the position Tanjiro and I were at. I tried to focus on anything but the height. My eyes opened once again to see the never-ending fall. My breathing got harder to control as I clenched onto Tanjiro's Haori desperately trying to get away. "Try to go to sleep," Tanjiro suggested for me. How could I in this position? I let the baggy clothing fool me but my gods does he have a body. I nod my head into his neck, unable to speak. Only my breaths could be heard as well as the far screaming and muffled shouting of Inosuke, Nezuko, and Zenitsu. Tanjiro and the demon both were silent as they stared each other down.

Finally, after a few minutes, my mind was more at ease with the wind flowing through my hair. I almost forgot about the height as my eyes were still closed but it would be hard to forget about Tanjiro. "How can you not have any fears?" The demon scoffed.. "It's like you're not even human. Human boys are specifically disgusting." It was getting harder for me to stay focused on their conversation.

" Oh, I have fears alright. But it's none of your concern."

"Then how can I not spot them! Her fear was as clear as day! I could see it in her eyes. But for you... I can't even read you! Your boar pet was the confrontation with family, and that other boy is scared of basically everything! That demon though, she's quite exquisite. You think it's bad for a demon to eat a demon?" The demon started to mutter to himself aloud.

Tanjiro continued to shuffle his way towards the demon, making sure I was safe. The demon took notice of my almost limp figure. "She's asleep, isn't she? There won't be a need for this anymore then." The demon snapped his fingers and the ground rose up swiftly as it was prior to the fight. The moons light reflecting off of the sand, but due to today's heat, the sand was still extremely hot. Tanjiro placed me onto the sand but made sure to protect my skin from burning with his haori. Inosuke and Zenitsu we're finally able to catch up with Tanjiro and the demon. It was like a game of chase. The demon just ran around avoiding their swords with such grace and ease. Was speed his whole shebang? Is that how he was able to get to me so fast? The boys were genuinely trying to catch their breaths after about a half hour of running at the demon.
—————————————————————————
Original release date: April 15 2020