Archive of Our Own

When Kyojuro became a Hashira, he felt… fulfilled.

His father wasn’t proud of him for it, but that wasn’t the reason Kyojuro became a Hashira. His father may have been the one to set him on that path, but it was Kyojuro who decided to continue on it.

The mantle of the Flame Hashira hung on his shoulders as though he was born for it, and Kyojuro couldn’t help but smile as he made his way towards his first official semiannual Hashira meeting. He’d actually become a Hashira a few months ago, but since it was just after the last Hashira meeting and Kyojuro had to recover from his injuries after his fight with Lower Moon Two, a meeting hadn’t been called until now.

Of course, unofficially, this wasn’t Kyojuro’s first Hashira meeting, but it would be the first one where he didn’t get kicked out after the first few minutes. Before officially earning the title of Flame Hashira for himself, he made a habit of apologizing to the existing Hashira for his father’s absence—for about two years now, at least.

As he arrived, he realized everyone was here, save for Tomioka.

“Hello, everyone!” Kyojuro greeted as he entered the garden. “It’s an honor to finally be greeting you as a Hashira!”

“Yeah, congrats! I heard you beat Lower Moon Two, huh?” Uzui grinned. “Not too shabby, not too shabby at all.”

Shinazugawa snorted. “Let’s see if he can actually keep it up and not die. Did you mess up your hearing again?”

“Nope!” Kyojuro smiled. “This time, it was my ribs and legs that got messed up!”

Shinazugawa rolled his eyes.

“Hello,” Shinobu greeted, her smile somewhat empty. “I look forward to working with you, Rengoku.”

Kyojuro felt a pang of sorrow as she spoke. While Shinobu was undoubtedly a talented Hashira, having invented her own style to serve as the first ever Insect Hashira, she only became one after the tragic death of her older sister, Kanae.

Kyojuro had liked Kanae. He had hoped to serve alongside her and have the privilege of getting to know her better, but it seemed he had simply been too slow for that.

“And I look forward to working with you, as well, Kocho!”

“Welcome to the ranks of the Hashira, Rengoku.” This was Himejima, who nodded towards Kyojuro as he spoke.

“Thank you, Himejima!”

Kyojuro glanced around, but Tomioka had still yet to arrive. Of all the current Hashira, Kyojuro knew him best. Over the past two years, they’d ended up on missions together for one reason or another. It was a bit strange since Kyojuro wasn’t a Hashira at the time, and they say that only Hashira got to see the other Hashira frequently; however, Kyojuro wasn’t going to question his own good luck.

Tomioka finally arrived, slipping in through the back entrance of the garden without a word to anyone else. His eyes landed on Kyojuro, flitting to the flaming mantle that hung from his shoulders.

“Tomi—”

Kyojuro had the breath knocked out of him suddenly when Shinazugawa drove his elbow into his side. “Eyes forward, dolt.”

Abruptly, Kyojuro realized that Ubuyashiki had arrived without his notice. He quickly fell in line with the rest of the Hashira, shoving away his own embarrassment.

“Greetings, Oyakata,” Shinobu formally greeted. “We hope you are doing well.”

“Thank you, Shinobu.” Ubuyashiki nodded to everyone, his smile peaceful. “Welcome to the semiannual Hashira meeting. While I’m pleased that no one has left us since the last meeting, I am even more pleased to welcome Kyojuro Rengoku among our ranks. As you all know, he defeated Lower Moon Two to earn his rank. I ask that you all take care of him and welcome him to our ranks.”

“Thank you, Oyakata!”

Ubuyashiki’s expression softened. “Congratulations, Kyojuro. I no longer have to dismiss you from the meeting.”

“I am quite excited!” Kyojuro replied with a grin. “I will do my utmost to fulfill my duty as the Flame Hashira.”

“I would expect nothing less. Now, for formal business—”

The meeting lasted roughly an hour. It wasn’t quite what Kyojuro was expecting, but it was interesting nonetheless. Being new, he didn’t contribute too much. Instead, he observed and tried to absorb as much information as he could from his seniors, doing his best to commit the information to memory and improve on his ability to serve as a Hashira in the future.

Once the meeting concluded, Ubuyashiki departed their presence with a few warm words, and Kyojuro immediately turned to find Tomioka—

Only to note he’d already left.

He was the only Hashira who hadn’t spoken once during the meeting. Kyojuro wondered if he wasn’t feeling well. He knew Tomioka as a man of few words, but even then, he did still talk when they went on missions together. Kyojuro should check on him to make sure he was alright.

Kyojuro started to leave to search for Tomioka, only to be stopped.

“Yo, Rengoku!” Uzui threw an arm around his shoulders, halting Kyojuro in his tracks. “Where are you running off to? Let’s go get drinks! We gotta properly celebrate you becoming a Hashira!”

“We’re months too late for that,” Shinazugawa observed flatly.

Shinobu mockingly patted Shinazugawa’s shoulder, ignoring the growl the action elicited. “Now, now. We Hashira are very busy, so we should celebrate when it’s convenient. Will you be treating us, Uzui?”

“Hello, no! Not with how much you can drink, Kocho.”

“Aw, what a shame.”

“I appreciate the offer!” Kyojuro said, when he finally got the chance to speak without talking over someone. “I’ll happily take you up on it!”

“Then let us go,” Himejima said, starting to herd the other Hashira out of the garden like a school teacher rounding up his children. He was probably trying to avoid some kind of argument breaking out.

Kyojuro let himself be herded, but then he recalled that Tomioka still wasn’t with them. He abruptly stopped, causing Uzui to nearly walk into him. “What about Tomioka? Shouldn’t we invite him to join us, as well?”

“Tomioka?” Shinazugawa spat the man’s name like it was an insult. “As if that bastard would come.”

Kyojuro stared at Shinazugawa. He had to take a moment to actually process the words the Wind Hashira was saying. “...Why wouldn’t he come?”

“I’ve invited Tomioka out a few times, but he always ignores the invites.” Uzui shrugged. He urged Kyojuro to walk again by patting his shoulder, which Kyojuro did in the interest of not holding up the group too much. “He doesn’t talk much. I have no idea what his deal is, but he doesn’t spend much time with us or talk with any of us.”

Shinazugawa snorted. “I know what his deal is. He thinks he’s too good for the rest of us just because he invented some fancy new form for Water Breathing. Eleventh Form my ass, he’s still an arrogant bastard.”

“I don’t get that impression from him at all!” Kyojuro would be the first to admit he didn’t know Tomioka all that well—they were too busy on the missions they went on together to be able to talk too much—but he never seemed arrogant. Reserved, maybe, but not arrogant.

“Well, you have rocks for brains, so I’m not surprised.”

Kyojuro only smiled. “If I truly had rocks for brains, then I believe I would have a hard time serving as the Flame Hashira. I certainly hope I don’t!”

“You…” Shinazugawa stared at him for a moment before chucking. “I can’t tell if you’re serious or joking.”

It was mostly a joke, but it was also a way of not rising to Shinazugawa’s bait. Kyojuro was starting to learn how to interact with him without inciting violence, which he was very proud of. Shinazugawa was the human equivalent of a bomb, after all. Anything could set him off, and the results were normally unpleasant, to say the least.

“You haven’t learned yet that insulting Rengoku is useless, Shinazugawa?” Shinobu used a tone that implied she was mocking Shinazugawa, but it was also difficult to tell.

He only rolled his eyes. “Yeah, yeah, whatever.”

The night was, overall, pleasant. Rengoku liked Shinobu, Shinazugawa, Uzui, and Himejima—he was looking forward to serving alongside them as a Hashira. He didn’t drink himself, but it was entertaining to learn what the others were like under the influence.

Shinazugawa was mostly the same, just louder. Shinobu had a mean streak when she was drunk—she slipped hot sauce into Shinazugawa and Uzui’s drinks when they weren’t looking, which Kyojuro found impressive. Uzui demanded to know why she wasn’t pranking Kyojuro instead, to which she responded by giggling uncharacteristically. Uzui, meanwhile, got flirty and chatty when he was drunk—he was apparently married, so Kyojuro didn’t know how he felt about that. He would assume Uzui was joking. Himejima was a quiet drunk, but he did randomly burst into tears from time to time. The others assured him this was actually normal behavior for him and had nothing to do with the alcohol, which only served to make Kyojuro more concerned.

Kyojuro departed the four’s company feeling light, but as he arrived home late at night—Senjuro and his father would be asleep by now, so he tried to stay quiet as made his way to his room—he couldn’t help but think it would’ve been nicer if all the Hashira had been there.

-/-/-

Tomioka never once wrote him back when Kyojuro had tried writing him (Kyojuro never took it personally; that seemed to be more just the way Tomioka was than an attempted personal slight), so Kyojuro had to get the location of the Water Estate out of one of the kakushi he was working with during a mission.

He could potentially just wait for the two of them to be sent on a mission together, but Kyojuro found himself impatient to speak with the Water Hashira again. Although he tended to get very lucky in being paired with Tomioka on missions, they could still go months without seeing hide nor hair of each other. That wasn’t uncommon when dealing with Hashira, and while Kyojuro should have more chances to work with him now that he was a Hashira himself, there was no guarantee of that.

The Water Estate was a tranquil looking building situated in a quiet landscape. It wasn’t too far off from headquarters, so it didn’t take Kyojuro long to travel there. A wall separated the grounds from the road, but given there was no gate, Kyojuro announced his arrival and entered.

There was no one in sight. Normally there’d be a garden situated within the walls of such an estate, but the grounds were fairly bare. Kyojuro hummed at the sight—a rock garden might be suited to it, if plants were too difficult to maintain. Given how much time Hashira spent out on missions, he imagined caring for plants on your own would be difficult.

“Tomioka!” he called. “Pardon my intrusion!”

Still no response. He approached the front door and waited a moment. He called a few more times, and when he received no response, he lingered with his hand on the door.

It would be rude to barge into Tomioka’s home without permission. If he was actually home, he would be fully within his rights to kick Kyojuro out immediately. If he wasn’t home, then it would be downright creepy for Kyojuro to just enter his home.

So he pulled his hand away from the door and stepped back. “Tomioka! Are you here?”

He still received no response. Based on Kyojuro’s experience, it wasn’t like Tomioka to completely ignore him, so he must just not be home.

Kyojuro started back for the entryway to the grounds, but a flutter of black feathers in the corner of his eye caught his attention. He only had a few moments to react as a kasugai crow literally flew into his chest, and he had to stoop to catch it before it crashed to the ground. He cradled it gently in his arms, watching as it shook its head in a daze.

“...Kanzaburo?”

The bird perked up upon hearing his name. “Departed! Departed!”

“Departed?” Kyojuro cocked his head at the bird. “What do you mean? Do you know where Tomioka is?”

“Departed! Departed!”

Kyojuro sighed. There were too many things that could mean, so Kyojuro wouldn’t worry about it too much. He knew Kanzaburo was old and often delivered unclear or blatantly incorrect messages. That Tomioka refused to replace him despite that always left Kyojuro feeling soft.

He kept the kasugai crow cradled in his arms as he left the estate, careful not to prevent the bird from leaving in case he wanted to stay or had messages to deliver. He didn’t want to just dump Kanzaburo off at a random place within the estate, but neither did he want to prevent him from doing his job if he needed to leave or take him away from his home.

The bird settled into his arms and didn’t show any signs of budging.

-/-/-

Kanzaburo was still with him when he arrived back home.

Kyojuro hesitated at the threshold to his home and looked down at the bird. “Isn’t there somewhere you need to be? What about Tomioka?”

Instead of responding, Kanzaburo nestled himself further into his arms.

Kyojuro sincerely hoped that Tomioka wasn’t in desperate need of his kasugai crow at the moment. Kyojuro entered his home, maneuvering Kanzaburo to the other arm so he could open the door. He shut the door behind himself.

“Aniue! Welcome back!”

Kyojuro felt his face melt into a smile. “Senjuro! How are you?”

“I’m good,” he said. “I’ve been practicing the sword forms you showed me last week. The nichirin blade still won’t change colors, though…”

Hating the way Senjuro’s face fell as he spoke, bracing himself for disappointment and ridicule, Kyojuro placed a hand on his shoulder. “Don’t worry about it. If you’re concerned, I can help teach you later. You’re still young, so there is no need to rush!”

“But… You passed the Final Selection when you were thirteen.” Senjuro looked down. “At this rate, I’m going to fall behind.”

“I took it early. Most take it when they’re fifteen or sixteen. There is no need for you to do things at my pace. Do them at your own!” Kyojuro hoped the message would get through. “For now, though, would you help me gather some blankets? I want to make a bed for Kanzaburo.”

Senjuro blinked, his eyes falling on the bird in Kyojuro’s arms. It seemed he was only now realizing that the crow wasn’t Kyojuro’s crow, Kaname.

“Yes!” Senjuro immediately started for the closet where they kept the spare bedding and blankets, and he rooted through it for a suitable blanket. He poked his head out of the closet to ask, “Who’s crow is that, by the way?”

“Tomioka’s! I tried to visit him today, but his crow crashed into me. I caught him, but he hasn’t wanted to leave since I did.”

Senjuro returned from the closet with a blanket bundled in his arms, and he dutifully followed Kyojuro as they made their way to his room. “Did he injure himself when he crashed into you? Maybe that’s why he hasn’t flown away?”

Kyojuro immediately stopped in his tracks.

“Senjuro! You are very smart! I didn’t think of that at all!”

Senjuro smiled, his face burning at the praise. “Let’s get his bed setup in your room and then check, okay?”

“Right!”

They bundled the blanket into the rough form of a nest next to Kyojuro’s window, and once that was done, Kyojuro carefully deposited the bird within the nest. Senjuro took a few minutes to carefully prod Kanzaburo’s wings, legs, and torso, looking for any signs of broken skin beneath the feathers or broken bones. He found nothing, and Kanzaburo patiently let himself be examined.

“I don’t think he’s hurt,” Senjuro finally said. “I’m not sure why he’s not going about his business.”

Kyojuro hummed thoughtfully. “Perhaps he’s confused? He is very old, and it wouldn’t be the first time he did something odd because he got mixed up.”

“Maybe?” Senjuro peered at the bird, who cawed up at him.

“I should send Kaname to Tomioka,” Kyojuro realized. “If Kanzaburo isn’t delivering his messages or orders, that could cause problems. He must be worried, too.”

“Good idea, Aniue!”

Kaname was instructed to go help Tomioka and let him know where Kanzaburo was in short order, and the bird was fairly patient in taking on what was technically another crow’s work. He took off, quickly blending into the night sky, and with that taken care of and Kanzaburo settled in, Senjuro and Kyojuro settled in for bed.

-/-/-

Kyojuro woke to the distant sound of yelling.

He squinted at the sun, realizing it was already well into morning. It wasn’t like him to oversleep, but he had gotten very little sleep for the past… while.

He blinked groggily, only reminded of why he was awake when the yelling came again. He pulled himself out of his futon and ran down the hall, following the sound. He quickly found himself at the entrance to the Rengoku estate, a familiar head of black hair standing just outside.

“—Go away! Get out!”

“...My crow is—”

“I don’t care!” Shinjuro snapped. “Your crow is just as useless as you, Hashira. I don’t want anything to do with any of you, so get out! Don’t show your worthless face here again!”

“Father!”

Shinjuro’s face twitched, and he turned to glare at Kyojuro.

He steeled himself and said, “Tomioka is my guest and comrade. I ask that you not yell at him or insult him.”

“So what?” Shinjuro scowled. “No matter how many Hashira there are, those born without talent will always be without talent. There’s no point in wasting your time on a useless fight you can’t win.”

“That is my choice to make,” Kyojuro replied. He was used to this argument—they’d had it hundreds of times before, and Kyojuro was prepared to have it hundreds of times more. He never got through to his father, but he could only hope that, one day, he might. “And you’re wrong! If it protects people, it’s not useless! And Tomioka is very talented!”

Shinjuro started at Kyojuro for a moment, his expression, for a moment, free of anger. Kyojuro let himself quietly hope that the father he remembered had returned, but the hope died when his father’s expression darkened.

He didn’t say another word as he wandered away, taking another swig of the jug he was carrying.

Kyojuro sighed. “It’s too early to be drinking, Father!”

Shinjuro chucked the jug at Kyojuro’s head.

The move was far too telegraphed for Kyojuro to be caught unaware—he was used to it, as well, so he reached a hand up to catch the jug before it could smack him in the face. However, before it reached him, Tomioka shot forward and snatched it out of the air.

He normally wore a serious expression, but he seemed far more forlorn than he normally did.

Kyojuro spared a quick glance down the hall to make sure the coast was truly clear of his father, but he could no longer see him. He hoped he hadn’t accidentally woken up Senjuro, as well.

“Thank you, Tomioka!” Kyojuro said brightly. He held out his hand for the jug, which Tomioka obediently passed to him. His father likely had more stashed somewhere, but Kyojuro could at least dispose of this one and do his father’s kidneys a favor, however minor. “I apologize you had to see that! My father has been feeling out of sorts for some time now, so I hope you’ll forgive him. I know it’s not how a former Hashira should conduct himself.”

Slowly, Tomioka shook his head. “...It’s surprising, to say the least.”

“I imagine so! It must be shocking to arrive at a friend’s house, only to have someone start yelling at you. I apologize for that!”

“No, that’s not…” Then, Tomioka paused, the tips of his ears turning red. “...you said friends?”

“Of course! You are a good friend, Tomioka—one I value very much!”

Tomioka stared at him. He opened his mouth to say something, but he seemed to have trouble forming the words. His face turned bright red, too, and when he spoke, it was quiet enough that Kyojuro was completely unable to hear what he said.

“I’m sorry, Tomioka, but I didn’t catch that!”

‘I said that you shouldn’t waste your time with me.’

It had been some time since Tomioka had switched to signing to communicate with Kyojuro. It had been their primary form of communication when they first started going on missions together, but once Kyojuro’s hearing had mostly returned, they switched back save for when they needed to communicate silently. Or when Tomioka’s voice was too soft for Kyojuro’s now admittedly poor hearing to catch.

“It’s not a waste!” Kyojuro insisted. “Like I said, I value you. I want to spend time with you and for you, so please don’t call it a waste!”

Tomioka’s brow pinched, like he wanted to argue, but something held him back.

Kyojuro smiled at him, which caused his cheeks—which were already red—to turn a madder shade.

Perhaps Tomioka was just shy and not used to attention, which was definitely the case, but even then, his flustered reaction was quite strong. Kyojuro hadn’t said anything all that much. Did that mean…?

Kyojuro pushed the thought aside for now, not wanting to jump to conclusions. Instead, he said, “Right! You came here for Kanzaburo, correct?”

“...Yes.” This time, Tomioka signed and said it both. His voice was just barely audible to Kyojuro, so he was grateful for the consideration.

“I’ve set him up in my room!” Kyojuro announced. “Come on, I’ll show you to him.”

Tomioka followed him without a word, so Kyojuro decided to fill the silence himself as he normally would. It’d been several months since they’d last seen each other, excluding the Hashira meeting where they didn’t get a chance to speak to one another, so Kyojuro had plenty to catch Tomioka up on.

“—and Kanroji has progressed well! Did you know she developed her own style? I’m very proud of her! I have no doubt that she’ll be joining us to help fill the empty seats soon enough!”

Tomioka was quiet for a moment. “...She called it Love Breathing, right?”

“Yes!” Kyojuro grinned. “You know Kanroji? That’s wonderful! I’m sure the two of you would get along well.”

“No,” Tomioka corrected quietly. “I’ve never met her. You wrote about her in your letters.”

Kyojuro froze for a second. He almost felt as though his heart had skipped a beat. He’d assumed that Kanzaburo had either lost those letters or that Tomioka simply hadn’t read them. He’d never gotten a reply in the past two years he’d been writing, after all, and Tomioka had never indicated he’d read them during their shared missions.

Kyojuro beamed at him. “You read them? I’m honored! I had assumed you weren’t, but I apologize for my assumption on the matter. Thank you for reading them!”

“Mn.” If Tomioka actually said anything, Kyojuro couldn’t make it out. “...Sorry for not responding.”

“Don’t worry about it. I’ll continue to write to you! But! Please don’t feel the need to respond. I am sure you have reasons for not doing so.”

Tomioka was silent, and before he could properly respond, Kyojuro realized they’d arrived at his room. He ushered Tomioka inside and closed the door behind, which afforded them some privacy in case his father decided to wander the estate.

Kanzaburo cawed excitedly when Tomioka arrived, and he jumped from the window sill to land on the Water Hashira’s shoulder. Tomioka let out a breath of relief at seeing the crow safe, and he raised a finger to allow the bird to affectionately peck at him for a moment.

“Thank you,” he said, turning to Kyojuro.

“It was no problem! Would you like to stay for some tea?”

“...Okay.”

Kyojuro felt a smile bubble up to his lips at Tomioka’s acceptance. “Wait here! I’ll go get tea, then!”

Kyojuro left Tomioka in his room, racing down to the kitchen to try and scramble together some tea and snacks. It’d probably be more formal to move Tomioka to the room with the kotatsu, but that would increase the chances of another encounter with his father, which Kyojuro would rather avoid.

He set the kettle on the stove, impatiently turning the burner on high so the water would boil faster.

“Aniue?”

Kyojuro turned to grin at Senjuro. “Good morning! I hope we didn’t disturb your rest this morning.”

“No, I just woke up. Did something happen?” Senjuro asked, his eyes shining with genuine concern.

Senjuro was such a sweet child. Kyojuro couldn’t have asked for a better younger brother, and he was immensely proud of the kind and considerate person that Senjuro was. He just wished that Senjuro had experienced even some of the parental love that Kyojuro had experienced from their parents as a child—he deserved better.

But that was what Kyojuro was there for. If his parents could no longer serve Senjuro in the role he deserved, then Kyojuro would just have to fill those shoes himself.

“Tomioka is visiting to retrieve his crow,” Kyojuro explained. “When he initially arrived, it was Father who greeted him. It wasn’t the warmest greeting, but luckily I woke up before Father was able to run him off. He’s in my room at the moment.”

“Oh!” Senjuro craned to look over Kyojuro’s shoulder. “Are you making tea? Do you need any help?”

“I can make tea!”

It was that moment that the kettle chose to boil over.

Senjuro jumped forward to turn off the burner, giving Kyojuro an exasperated smile. “...You can’t fill the kettle all the way to the top, Aniue. Let me make it for you, alright? I’ll bring it to your room.”

“...Very well, but let me know if you need help!”

Kyojuro used to protest harder when Senjuro kicked him out of the kitchen, but now he accepted it with little fanfare. Cooking was one of the things he wanted to learn, but unfortunately, he’d dedicated so much of his life to training and becoming a demon slayer that he’d never had the chance to learn properly. He made very elementary mistakes very often, ones that made Senjuro call him a hazard once.

Kyojuro retreated back to his room, and Tomioka looked up when he arrived. He’d situated himself on the floor—Kyojuro’s only furniture was a futon, a bookshelf, and a desk with a single chair. He could’ve taken the chair, but he was likely trying not to be rude. Kyojuro joined him on the floor.

“Welcome back, Kyo—Rengoku.”

Kyojuro smiled. “You can call me Kyojuro!”

“Oh… Thank you.” Tomioka shifted. “You can… call me Giyu, then.”

Kyojuro beamed at him, more pleased with the development that he should be. “Senjuro kicked me out of the kitchen! Apparently, you are not supposed to fill the kettle all the way to the top when you make tea. Did you know that, Giyu?”

It almost made him feel giddy to use Tomioka’s first name, which was odd. Giyu certainly wasn’t the first friend he’d ended up on a first name basis with, but…

It deserved pondering. Later.

Giyu stared at him a moment. “...Yes?”

“I see! I must be lacking in my culinary skills,” Kyojuro observed. “I’ll have to rectify that!”

“I can teach you. If you’d like.”

“Oh? Do you know how to make tea?” Kyojuro was genuinely curious—Kanroji sort of knew, but Senjuro had deemed her almost as much of a disaster as Kyojuro.

“I can make tea and cook,” Giyu replied. “Though not well.”

Kyojuro hummed thoughtfully. “I’m sure that’s not true! Or, at the very least, your cooking should be better than mine. I would be honored to learn from you!”

“...Okay.” Giyu diverted his gaze to the floor, but Kyojuro caught the flush to his cheeks.

It was only a hunch, but… Kyojuro was never one for subtlety or beating around the bush.

“Giyu! Do you like me?”

Giyu blinked, looking up and cocking his head at Kyojuro. “...Yes?”

“I mean not just as a friend! But romantically!”

At that, Giyu’s eyes widened, and his breathing spiked.

Giyu’s next reaction was something that Kyojuro wouldn’t have believed had he not seen it with his own eyes. Giyu bolted for the window—not the door, mind you, the window—which was still open in consideration for Kanzaburo’s stay the previous night. Clearly utilizing his skills and training as the Water Hashira, Giyu literally threw himself out of it.

Kyojuro immediately chased after him, trying to snatch his haori before he fully made it out. They were on the second floor, after all, and Kyojuro didn’t want Giyu to hurt himself.

But he slipped from his grip, Kyojuro just a bit too slow to catch him.

Kyojuro immediately ducked his head out the window, watching for a breathless moment as Giyu landed in the garden below. The landing was perfect, with all the grace expected of the Water Hashira. Kyojuro let out a sigh of relief.

“It’s okay if you don’t!” Kyojuro called. “I apologize for assuming! You don’t need to run away!”

Giyu looked up at him for a moment, his face still beet red, before he unceremoniously ran from the grounds. With his speed, he was out of sight in a few moments. Kanzaburo followed after him at a leisurely pace, his wings beating shallowly.

For a moment, he thought about chasing after Giyu, but he felt that may only make the situation worse. If Giyu wanted space and didn’t want to have such a conversation, then Kyojuro could only respect that.

Kyojuro sighed and, feeling a little dejected, he closed the window to his bedroom.

Senjuro chose that moment to enter Kyojuro’s room with the tea. “Aniue, the tea is—” He stared at the room for a moment, which clearly only Kyojuro was occupying, with blatant confusion. “...I thought Tomioka was here?”

“He was, until about a minute ago! He jumped out the window when I asked if he liked me!”

“Oh…? Um, do you like him, Aniue?”

“Yes!”

“Did you tell him that before asking if he liked you?”

“No! Should I have?”

“Maybe.” Senjuro shifted from one foot to the other, before setting the tray of tea down on Kyojuro’s desk. “You see, he might’ve thought you were accusing him or ‘catching’ him, otherwise. If you like him, it might be better to tell him that first, so he knows why you’re asking if he likes you.”

Kyojuro only nodded. That made sense, so much so that he was ashamed of himself for not realizing. Giyu was an incredibly shy and reserved person. Of course such a conversation would have made him uncomfortable. “I see! Thank you for enlightening me, Senjuro. Next time I see him, I’ll be sure to apologize and rectify my mistake.”

“Okay, that’s good.” Senjuro paused, then quickly added, “And! Um, does he make you happy?”

Kyojuro felt himself soften. Only his little brother could be so warm. “Yes, very much so!”

“Good.” Senjuro smiled at him, his timidness with the subject evaporating. “If he makes you happy, then I hope it works out. I think you deserve to be happy, Aniue.”

Kyojuro couldn’t help it. He surged forward to pull Senjuro into a hug, wrapping his little brother in his arms. Senjuro returned the gesture with ease, never one to protest affection from his older brother. He melted into it, and Kyojuro felt he hadn’t given him nearly enough affection to make up for the affection he was missing from an absent father and a late mother. He would have to do his best to fix that, as well.

His dejection from earlier was all but gone. It was a shame he couldn’t speak with Giyu right away, but his conversation with his brother had set his heart alight. He had a plan to rectify his mistake, and he had the best little brother in the world who loved and supported him. Kyojuro couldn’t possibly ask for more.

-/-/-

It had been. Four months.

Kyojuro didn’t consider himself particularly impatient. While he preferred to do things in the spur of the moment, that didn’t mean he couldn’t force himself to wait for a more opportune time. However, waiting four months to speak to Giyu was driving Kyojuro up a wall.

Giyu, apparently, could make himself incredibly difficult to find when he didn’t want to be found.

Kyojuro had written him at least sixteen letters, visited the Water Estate no less than ten times, and taken on various missions that placed him in Giyu’s territory. None of the other Hashira had heard hide nor hair of him, either. Kyojuro was starting to think he should give up lest his behavior start to become creepy, but he really did want to clear up the misunderstanding caused by his mistake.

“I’m sure you’ll get a chance to talk to him soon,” Senjuro assured.

They were settled under the kotatsu on one of Kyojuro’s rare days off. The warmth was a nice way to stave off the bite of winter, but even so, Kyojuro found himself sulking still.

It was childish, he knew, but he honestly didn’t know what else to do. He’d had plenty of time to think about the way he felt about Giyu, and the more he thought about it, the more sure he was that he wanted to at least try dating Giyu, which made it all the more frustrating that he couldn’t at least clear the air with him.

But for Senjuro, he smiled and said, “Yes, you are right! Since we’re both Hashira, it would be impossible for us never to see one another again.”

Unless one of them died, but Kyojuro wouldn’t let that possibility cloud his thoughts. Dying at any given moment to protect others was a given when you were a demon slayer.

They chatted for some time, Kyojuro recounting his recent missions to Senjuro. Since becoming a Hashira, Kyojuro had less and less time to spend with Senjuro, so he took the chance to spend what time he could with him.

They were only interrupted by the sound of tapping on the shoji screen door.

“It’s probably Kaname,” Kyojuro said, reluctantly pulling himself up and out of the warmth of the kotatsu. He made his way to the door and slid it open, and just as he’d suspected, he was greeted by happy cawing.

Except this was Kanzaburo, not Kaname.

Kyojuro smiled softly at the bird. “Hello, there! I do have another letter for Giyu—wait a moment and let me get it.”

Kanzaburo was a sweet bird. Even when Kyojuro hadn’t seen a hint of Giyu, Kanzaburo still visited in order to pick up his letters for Giyu. Kyojuro could see why Giyu cared about him so much.

He ran to his room to retrieve his letter and return in record time, entrusting it to Kanzaburo. He thought that would be the end of it, but once the letter was secured, Kanzaburo screeched, “Tomioka injured on a mission! Tomioka is at the Butterfly Mansion!”

Then, the bird took off.

Kyojuro stared for a moment, stunned. News like that should technically be delivered when the bird first arrived, but Kyojuro supposed Kanzaburo was doing his best with his faulty memory.

Kyojuro’s gaze snapped to Senjuro. He was supposed to be spending time with his little brother, and he didn’t want to neglect him. He deserved more than—

“Go check on Tomioka,” Senjuro said, because he was too good for this world. “It’s your chance to speak with him, and you’re going to worry if you don’t make sure he’s alright, right? I’ll be here when you get back!”

Kyojuro’s expression softened. He practically leapt across the room to pull Senjuro into a hug. “Thank you, Senjuro. I promise, my next day off will be entirely yours—we can do whatever you want!”

“We’ve already spent most of today together,” Senjuro replied, though he returned the hug with an affectionate squeeze.

“And you deserve all the days!”

Senjuro laughed. “Okay, then—next time, too. Thank you, Aniue.”

“It’s a promise.” Kyojuro pulled back and nodded at Senjuro. “I’ll see you later tonight!”

“Take care, and send my well wishes to Tomioka, too!”

“I will be sure to!”

With that, Kyojuro took off. The Butterfly Mansion wasn’t too far from the Rengoku Estate, both being situated somewhat close to the Demon Corp’s headquarters. It was already late, so the sun had set hours ago with the winter’s shorter days. Kyojuro should have grabbed a scarf or something to wear with his uniform and mantle, but he was in a rush, so he instead used Flame Breathing as he ran to heat his core and stave off the frigid air.

He thought about stopping to pick something up for Tomioka (What would he like? Would flowers be acceptable?), but it was unlikely that any establishments would be open at this point. He wanted to arrive as quickly as possible, as well.

He arrived at the Butterfly Mansion, barreling into the front garden like a freight train and coming to an abrupt stop.

He forced himself to take a leisurely pace as he entered the Mansion. He doubted Shinobu would appreciate it if he broke down her door, and he didn’t want to startle her charges, either.

“Hello!” he announced, to avoid surprising anyone with his unexpected arrival.

There was no hint of anyone for a moment, not a sound, then he caught the faint sound of footsteps approaching from the hall. A girl with pigtails arrived and raised an eyebrow at him.

“I am Kyojuro Rengoku, the Flame Hashira!” he told her. “It’s nice to meet you. I was told Giyu Tomioka was injured recently, so I came to check on him.”

“Oh… I’m Aoi, it’s nice to meet you, too,” she replied, her expression turning thoughtful. “I didn’t think Tomioka would have any visitors given how minor his injuries are, but he’s still here. Lady Shinobu should be finishing patching him up now. I’ll show you the way.”

“Thank you! I appreciate it!”

He followed her, and for once, he was quiet—he was sure she had better things to do, and he was also trying to stave off his own nerves. He was glad to hear the injuries were minor, but he knew he wouldn’t be satisfied until he confirmed that Giyu was alright for himself.

On a less important note… He’d thought about what he would say to Giyu frequently, but in the end, he wasn’t the type of person to plan or rehearse speeches. He more or less just said what he felt in the moment, so he knew he would simply end up speaking from the heart when they met again.

If that wasn’t enough, then that would be that.

Aoi opened the door for him and ushered him inside, leading to two pairs of surprised eyes trained on him. Shinobu was in the middle of wrapping a cut on Giyu’s upper arm—his uniform was unbuttoned and loose around his waist, which Kyojuro did his best not to be distracted by. Shinobu blinked at him, having frozen in the middle of her work.

It seemed Aoi was right that Giyu’s injuries were minor. Other than the one on his arm, there was a bandage plastered on his cheek and shoulder, but neither looked to be serious at all. Kyojuro was relieved.

“Hello, Kocho! Hello, Giyu!” Kyojuro blurted as Aoi left the three of them to their business. “I apologize for the unannounced arrival, but when Kanzaburo said Giyu was injured, I wanted to check on him. I’m happy your injuries were mild, Giyu!”

Giyu immediately bolted for the window.

This time, Kyojuro was prepared. He shot forward and tackled Giyu before he could flee, aided by Shinobu who pinned his other side to prevent his escape before she could finish treating his injuries. He flailed for a moment, but given he was being physically restrained by two Hashira, he finally slumped and gave up.

“Tomioka!” Shinobu’s tone was scolding, and she’d dropped the sickly sweet tone she typically used. “I wasn’t finished yet—I know you’re upset that no one likes you and you don’t have any friends, but you can’t jump out the window whenever a coworker shows up. It’s unprofessional. At least wait until I’ve finished.”

“...I have friends,” Giyu complained.

“Oh?” Shinobu gently pat Giyu’s shoulder as she went back to finished the wrap on Giyu’s arm—leaving pinning him to Kyojuro. “How is your crow doing, then? Or do you mean the fish at your estate?”

Giyu looked down. “...I don’t have fish.”

“I’m his friend!” Kyojuro finally said. “He means me!”

At least, Kyojuro hoped they were still friends. He valued that more than a potential romantic relationship with Giyu, not that he wouldn’t be ecstatic to be able to date Giyu, as well.

Giyu tensed in his grip, and unfortunately, with Kyojuro situated behind him to keep him still so Shinobu could finish her treatment, he couldn’t see what kind of expression he was making.

“Is that so?” Shinobu hummed, sounding unconvinced. “I hardly think Rengoku counts, Tomioka. He’s the human equivalent of a golden retriever. He makes friends with everyone, even someone as disagreeable as Shinazugawa.”

“...Oh.”

“You say that as though it’s a bad thing,” Kyojuro interjected.

Shinobu flashed him a smile. “I’m just teasing him, Rengoku, don’t worry. And you, too.”

“Forgive me for assuming!” Kyojuro felt himself return the smile as understanding dawned on him. Ribbing was Shinobu’s way of expressing affection for Giyu, he realized. He was glad. “Then Giyu had at least two friends—myself and you, Kocho!”

“Ah, well, I wouldn’t necessarily go that far.” But she wasn’t denying it either. She pulled back, tucking the spare gauze back into a supply drawer. “There, now you’re free to jump out as many windows as you want. Make sure you disinfect it and change the bandages, and come back if you start experiencing symptoms like fevers, irritation, or unusual pain.”

“...Okay.”

The three of them lingered for a moment, but Kyojuro made no move to release Giyu, and Giyu made no move to try and struggle out of his grip. He laid limply in Kyojuro’s arms as if resigned to it.

Shinobu cleared her throat. “Thank you for the help, Rengoku, but I think you can let go of Tomioka now.”

“Actually!” Rengoku grinned. “I wanted to speak with him privately first! I am worried that if I let go, he’ll run away before I get the chance.”

“...From anyone else I’d be actively worried about hearing that, but I suppose from you, that’s fine.”

“Thank you, Kocho!”

Giyu must have shot her a betrayed look as she gathered her things to leave, to which she responded, “Friends should get along without jumping out windows to avoid one another, Tomioka. If you’d like to continue to insist you have friends, I’d suggest you stay and talk with yours.”

With that, she stepped out of the room and slid the door shut behind her. This left the two of them alone for the first time in months.

Giyu sighed. “...You can let go. I won’t jump out the window.”

“Okay!” Kyojuro finally loosened his arms, allowing Giyu to pull away and sit across from him. He watched him with thinly veiled curiosity, so Kyojuro took the chance to start. “Thank you for staying to listen to me! I’m sorry for how our last conversation went—I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable. I just want to let you know that I like you, in a romantic sense! So if you like me, then I want to take you on a date! That’s why I asked!”

Giyu’s eyes widened, for once staring at Kyojuro with completely unmasked surprise. “You… like me.”

“Yes!”

“As in a romantic dating sense?”

“Absolutely!”

“And that’s not a joke?”

Kyojuro frowned. “Why would I joke about that? I genuinely care for you, and while I value our friendship, I would also like to take you on dates, hold your hand—among other things, if you’ll allow them!”

“And you’re… you’re sure about that?” It was Giyu’s turn to frown, much to Kyojuro’s confusion. “There’s no one else you’d rather do… that kind of stuff with? Why me, of all people?”

Kyojuro paused. So that was it? Giyu was having a hard time processing that Kyojuro liked him? “Right now, it can only be you! There is no one who still signs to me when they speak too softly for me to hear, and there is no one who will read all of my letters despite the fact I know they must be boring! There’s no one else who would keep an old crow like Kanzaburo around despite the inconveniences. You are kind and considerate, and I treasure that about you.”

Giyu’s face was difficult to read, but he seemed stunned into silence by Kyojuro’s words. It wasn’t the first time he’d had that effect on people, but it felt more meaningful this time. So Kyojuro continued.

“I also have an admission to make,” Kyojuro said. “I am very used to protecting others and serving as a pillar of strength, even before becoming a Hashira. I rarely have the chance to think of myself, or the chance to be weak. Most assume I am strong, and so they don’t worry about me. But during missions, you still go out of your way to protect me, even though you know of my strengths and skills by now. And! I know it’s not that you don’t trust me—I believe it’s your way of showing me that you care, and truthfully, it sets my heart at ease to know that I can rely on you. I don’t always feel the need to be strong in your presence, and I quite like that.”

When Giyu didn’t respond right away, Kyojuro took that as his cue that Giyu wasn’t quite convinced yet and tried to continue, but Giyu held up a hand to quiet him before he could say anything else. He still wasn’t meeting Kyojuro’s gaze, refusing to look him in the eye.

“I… Okay, I… I think you’re praising me too much, but…” Giyu paused, drew in a breath, and exhaled. “...If you’re sure… but let me know if you change your mind…”

Kyojuro smiled. “My feelings are not quite that fickle. But! First, do you like me? I don’t want to force you into anything just to make me happy.”

“Oh…” Giyu finally looked up, his expression twisting. His face was red, betraying his embarrassment, but there seemed to be a thousand things going through his head that didn’t fully make their way onto his face. Kyojuro could guess at some of them, but Giyu had opened up to him so infrequently that guessing the rest was impossible.

It would take time to get to know Giyu, to be able to know how to reassure him and chase away his insecurities, but Kyojuro didn’t consider himself an impatient man.

He could be patient.. He’d be as patient as he needed to be, for Giyu.

“...Yes, I like you. Of course I would.”

Kyojuro beamed at him. It was only a first step, but a step was still a step, even if there were a thousand more to take in the future. That was for the future, and Kyojuro would be happy to take each of those steps in turn. For now, he held out his hand and said, “Would you honor me with a date then, Giyu?”

Slowly, Giyu took Kyojuro’s hand and allowed himself to be pulled to his feet. “Right now?”

“Sure!” Kyojuro grinned, and together, they started for the exit to the Butterfly Mansion. Luckily, Giyu seemed more inclined to use the doors now. “Considering we’re both Hashira, I think it best we spend what time we can together—though I’ll need to let Senjuro know not to stay up waiting for me. Oh! And my next day off is reserved for him, so I cannot go on a date with you then.”

Giyu only nodded. “That’s fine. We can stop by your home.”

“Good!” Kyojuro led the way, pausing when he thought of something. “Did you get my recent letter yet? I suppose there’s little point to it now that we’ve spoken in person, so you don’t need to read it.”

“...You’ve been sending letters still?”

“I never stopped! Have you not gotten them?”

Slowly, Giyu shook his head. “...Not since four months ago.”

Oh! That explained it. Kyojuro’s letters had attempted to explain everything, even if there were some details that Kyojuro withheld, thinking they were better shared in person. If Giyu hadn’t gotten any of them, then from his perspective, the last time Kyojuro had any contact with him was that time four months ago.

No wonder Giyu was nervous!

…But then, what had Kanzaburo done with all his letters for the past four months?

Kyojuro was distracted from his thoughts when he felt a hand nudge his own, slowly wrapping cold fingers against his own, warmer hand. Kyojuro blinked, eyes flying up to Giyu.

Giyu averted his gaze. “...You said you wanted to hold hands?”

“Yes!” His grin split ear to ear as he locked their hands together, continuing their walk hand in hand.

Kyojuro had a very, very good feeling about this.

-/-/-

Kanzaburo landed on the edge of an engawa, cawing at the individual currently practicing with a wooden katana despite the late hour. Sanemi Shinazugawa, the Wind Hashira, immediately growled at the bird and chucked the wooden sword into the nearest tree—somehow splintering the three instead of the sword.

Kanzaburo, still having enough of a sense of self-preservation, took off, leaving a letter behind on Sanemi’s engawa.

“Fucking moron bird!” he yelled after him. “That letter better actually fucking be for me this time!”

When Kanzaburo made no move to return, Sanemi stormed to the porch and ripped open the letter. He already had a feeling what it was—more than half the letters he’d gotten in the past four months were all the same thing. And, as expected, this one was no different.

Sanemi only read the first few sentences before he growled and ripped the letter to shreds. “Goddamnit, Rengoku, stop sending your love letters through that fucking fossil of a crow. Why Tomioka?! What the fuck! Take it somewhere else!”

The next semiannual Hashira meeting was going to be a fun one.