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Sometimes while laying next to giyuu, you think back to that night in December years ago when demons were such a highly prevalent threat but never acknowledged by the general public seen as ghost stories parents told children to keep them in line. You yourself had been a non believer once that was until the night you nearly died and lost your family, but it also led you to fall hopelessly in love with the man who's eyes looked like the dark tide pools of the ocean you and your family used to visit in your younger years in the sweltering months of summer
The night had started as any other, you and your siblings were tending to each of your household chores, yours of which was feeding the few chickens your family kept for eggs, the rhythm of spreading feed around was comforting busy work and helped ease your turbulent thoughts about an uncertain future. The dusk was calm and serene...until it wasn't
The screams started quickly, almost so fast you didn't realize they were coming from your quaint home until you were dropping the bag of feed and making a mad dash for the house, bursting through the door all questions of wellbeing faded away your eyes going wide a breath catches in your throat. As you bare witness to the tail end of a slaughter, the slaughter of your family. Your body was frozen in time icy terror buzzing under your skin as your eyes upturn to look at the being who could've wrought such despair and carnage against your humble family your mother and father, your younger siblings. There standing over the desecrated bodies of your loved ones was an abysmal creature, hellish looking with skin that looked like it was coated in ash from a burning pire, its wiry knotted and ratty hair a pale amber color dyed and speckled crimson with your families blood, it's pericing yellow eyes swallowed by dark gray almost scarla and they were alight with hateful glee as it turned its hulking mass towards your trembling form
"Seems I missed a sheep" it growled out, it's voice akin to gravel as you stood helpless unable to formulate words for your fear was far to great in the face of this ashen beast, the murderer of your family it moves but you can hardly register that is has at all and when you blink it's upon you claws outstretched and poised to tear your throat open, you close your eyes a well of tears finally breaking. And you wait...you wait and wait for what seems an eternity but the pain never comes your not greeted with the spirits of your family waiting across the sanzu River no light of the afterlife.
Instead your eyes open still shimmering with tears and are greeted by the monster headless and fading away into the same ash you'd compared it's skin to, and above it's corpse stands your savior long dark locks a majority tied back into a low messy ponytail ebony strands frame his face he wears a duel sided haori plain red takes up one and geometric shapes of yellow and green decorate the other, but the feature that most captures what little attention you can afford in your grief are his eyes, deep and blue a beautiful display. They remind you subconsciously of the dark tidepools you and your siblings would mess about in when your family went to visit the ocean side where your grandparents had resided, though they had long since passed and the ocean side home had been abandoned
Your heart was broken with the loss of your last living family and you didn't think you could stand to be alone, you dropped to your knees arms falling away to your sides and the ocean eyed savior turns his monotonous emotionless gaze to your fallen form he steps forward silent like a roiling storm on the sea, the monster was gone nothing left but a torn dirty bloodied yukata indicating it was ever there in the first place
"Are...you alright?" His voice is extremely leveled and he sounds as if he couldn't care at all but you could tell there was a question there, minute worry in his flat tone "i..." you start but cannot even try to finish as everything that had just happened fell onto you like a turbulent wave. Anguish and horror poured into your expression and you broke down wailing like an animal fat sorrowful tears painting your rapidly reddening cheeks. Your sure you looked awful in front of the man who saved you but to his credit he stayed silent and almost vigilant of the surrounding and you wept your woes and sang your sorrows for even the gods to hear
It lasted only a few minutes but it felt like centuries for you (an eternity for giyuu who had never been good at helping the grieving) wailing turned to hiccups and hiccups to sniffles, you turn your teary bloodshot eyes to the dark haired man "m'sorry...I'm not" you finally answered his previous question with a stutter and he nodded. Looking back at the bodies of your family your throat clinched up and you couldn't bare to see them torn and tattered like that
The ebony haired man had to have seen your torn distraught expression for he kneeled down and shielded your gaze "go wait out front... I'll give them a proper burial" you hadn't needed to be told twice just pointed him out to the shed which held supplies for gardening and stumbled wearly out the shoji door plopping your shakey form onto the ground. The burial was quick, way faster then you expected but maybe that was a byproduct of your disheveled state
Giyuu as you soon learned his name was waited patiencely for you to say your shakey goodbyes and offer up your prayers before turning to him with a weary expression "where will you go?" It's a simple question but one you have no answer for minutely you look down trembling again and utter softly "i...would you take me with you? I don't wanna be alone" You don't see it but his eyes widen only a fraction before falling flat again "I can. But you'll have to fight, you'll have to face creatures like the one that slaughtered your family every night," through watery eyes you steel yourself and look up "I'll do it... if it'll help prevent others from going through what I just witnessed tonight I'll follow you and do what I need to I promise" it was conformation and all giyuu needed
And so you did, you followed giyuu he took you to his master and you trained. Trained long and hard, for 2 whole years you trained. The process was grueling and strenuous but you managed pushing through and preserving, with the death of your family the promise to giyuu and the want to protect others from your fate fueling your will and strengthening your resolve. Two years and a split Boulder later you're dashing through the demon filled woods a katana clinched in your grasp you had 1 day to go before the final selection was over you'd pushed though and killed at least 3 demons, it wasn't as much as you were hoping to get but you were managing and that was all you needed
It ended with the rise of dawn. You had done it you'd passed final selection and you'd done it well, you were given a crow picked your scarlet ore and had measurements taken for your uniform. It was all so fast but it was official now, you were a demon slayer and soon you'd meet up with giyuu again
You didn't meet up right away, it took a few months and some snooping from your crow for you two to meet once again. He was still as monotonous and guarded as he'd been that night he'd saved you. You knew it wasn't from dislike but merely a case of a deep shyness (much like your old self but It seems these past few years have changed you) you greet him gently but like an old friend and he gives a quiet hello in return
It goes like this for a while one sided conversations and such but even though it's subtle you figure out his little tells, when he's listening or when something has upset him. Excitement is rare from the water hashira but the one of the few times you truly saw him happy was when you took him out and got his favorite food you'd wanted to take him to lunch for a while now, just to hang out a simple gathering and you asked if hed had any food preferences you could keep an eye out for and he told you salmon with daikon without an ounce of hesitation you giggled and he turned away a small crick in his brow but you quickly apologized (while still giggling)
The small smile upon his mouth when you two finally had the free time to go to lunch made you blush lightly and turn away, this man was a mess (but in the end so were you.)
You confessed not long after that lunch date, it was after the joint mission both you and him had been sent on, you would've died that night had giyuu not jumped out from behind and beheaded the demon, once again saving you. On the way to the wisteria house both of you holding onto the others shoulder for duel support did you speak your feelings a small "I'm in love with you" tumbling from your lips, his silence right after was deafening to you
"Why?" Was his simple question your answer was just as simple "because...you took me with you" it was true, in the end he could've left you in the house alone with the memories of your family. Left to wallow in sorrow but he didn't he took the time to ask what you wanted to do and when you wanted to join, wanted to become a slayer he took you to his master he gave you something to work on a goal to achieve something to look forward to and even if he hadn't been there physically he'd been in your heart and mind, it was easy to fall in love with him despite his shy standoffish nature you fell and you fell hard
You two didn't say anything once you made it to the wisteria house but it was clear the dynamic had changed. Silent and quick just like giyuu, you two didn't make it outwardly clear the relationship that had blossomed between you both, it was secret to all but the both of you and after hours during free time in corners and hidden away places the water estate especially you both would congregate and talk in hushed whispers, meant only for yourselves
it was weeks after your initial confession did he say "i..love you" and those three words sent you into tears as you gently pawed his uniform and drew in close nestling yourself close to his body and resting your head upon his shoulder hugging around his waist, he hesitated for not but a moment before hugging you back gently resting his own head upon your shoulder, and like that you stayed through the night and well into the morning not knowing it would be your last few peaceful moments for the next few weeks to come.
It was to be expected but the final battle had been brutal, bloody and horrifically tragic, you managed to lose nearly everyone in the final stand against muzan watching slayers drop like flies amidst the demon progenitors fury, you had barely managed to pull through ending up missing an eye by the midway point of the night but you kept going for your fellow fallen slayers and for giyuu himself for all the people you'd protected over the years, you managed to be one amongst a handful of slayers still left standing after the fight was wrought, in the end as the dawn rose and humanity won, only 2 hashira managed to make it out alive, badly beaten limbs missing but alive, giyuu being one of them, your relief was immense.
The corps, days after the final battle was disbanded, with no more demons there was no need for demon slayers. You were waiting for giyuu in the hall and once the last hashira meeting was concluded he walked out with sanami trailing behind him, you waited for them to finish speaking watching as the now ex wind hashiras purple eyes wondered over to you catching your gaze for a moment before turning away and focusing on giyuu again, they said what seemed to be goodbyes before the white haired man turned and walked down the hall in the opposite direction destination unknown to you but not your business. Eyes turning away from sanami's retreating form they move instead to rest on giyuus beautiful tidepool eyes he walks closer reaching you in moments, taking your hand In his and resting his forehead against yours eyes closed his warm breath fanning over your face gently "we made it" you spoke softly "...we made it" he replied back just as soft, pulling away his eyes softened and lips curling up into a small smile "and we made it together" your heart swelled, and without hesitation you lean forward and place a chaste kiss upon the corner of his mouth
He's taken aback just slightly before he chases after your retreating lips and catches them, it's short and sweet but extremely satisfying for you both.
You both go to visit a recovering tanjiro along with everyone else wishing them well and letting them know that you'll always be open for letters and visits before you and giyuu took your leave and headed in the direction of home.
It's been years you and giyuu have been together ever since and are now the parents of two adopted children, and here in the dark with only the moon to illuminate the room you lay next to your loving husband gently carding your fingers though his hair, the story isn't over but this is merely a new chapter in both your lives, your eyes droop and you cuddle closer to your ocean eyed love before gently being lulled to sleep by his steady heartbeat and warm presence