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It has been 2 months since Tanjiro leaved the Butterfly Mansion.
Once Rengoku-san rehabilitation progressed with good results, he was finally given permission by Shinobu to go back to his own state and visit his family. She said that he couldn't start with any physical training whatsoever.
But yet, this was the perfect time to ask about it. Something that was around his mind for a very long time.
"Kamado boy, I need to ask you an important request!" the Hashira used his loud tone of demand after he got a little help to pack his things before going home, "As I said on the train that night, would you want to become my tsugoku?"
"Huh-?..What? Rengoku-san, you still want me to be your successor?" the younger boy freezed in shock. He did say that the same night both of them met, but after all, Tanjiro thought this was unlikely to happen again.
He couldn't be the Flame Hashira anymore..even if he was still expecting to recover enough to go back to battle.
Then, Kyojuro blinked a bit with confussion
"Hm! Of course I want to! Why shouldn't I? When I asked you the last time, I was as serious as I am now" he replied quickly "Doesn't matter I can't start training myself, but you can, boy! If you come home with me, I'm sure Senjuro would be pleased to help you restoring the flame hashira scripts you needed"
Tanjiro was trying to keep his emotions aside all this time. He was going to miss seeing Rengoku-san every day, enjoying his company, learning more about him and feeling so glad to watch him eating, laughing, smiling again. It was so admirable to look at his will to recover.
He was alive. Nothing could make him more happy than that.
But..the sense of guilt suddenly invaded the burgundy boy once he heard the former Hashira was going to return back his state. How could be this selfish? Tanjiro knew how much Rengoku wanted to see his brother and his father. He couldn't go with him or beg to stay. The young man slapped himself internally, he was the eldest son and can control his inner sadness. He had to keep calm and not make Rengoku-san worried about him.
And then, his words made his heart shake
Rengoku-san smelled very honest and deeply hopeful according to each of his words coming out of his lips, with a look from the flaming eye that expressed hope and a silent fear of rejection of the anwser.
Finally, the boy smiled moved and nodded "Yes! I'll be honored to be your tsugoku, Rengoku-san!"
Today was a particularly cold day one month before spring begins.
And despite this, Tanjiro got up early to do some of the training routine, he was already accustomed to Rengoku's two hundred lunges method. The first days training as the Flame Hashira's Tsugoku were similar to a living nightmare, it was easy to understand why no one could stand training along Rengoku, but the young boy didn't surrender. It was what he needed to practice until his body was ready to perform the Hinokami Kagura without collapsing.
Then, he heard the shoji opening, showing a messy blonde mane peeking out. Looks like Kyojurou moved a lot while sleeping last night. It was kind of cute to see him like that
"Mm?..Yomoya, you're already up before I noticed it"
"Ah, good morning, Rengoku-san!"
"It seems like is going to snow today, so you can rest for now with the morning training" he said as he took a step to the yard. The older one had taken a small blanket from his own room and he places it on the boy's shoulders, showing a warm smile, "You should not force your lungs without taking a break with an extreme change of temperature"
"It's okay, really!" Tanjiro exclamed almost immediately "As I was born in the mountains, this kind of weather feels very natural to me!"
"Haha! I expected that answer from you! But this is also my way to give my tsugoku a reward for not missing a single day of training in weeks"
Maybe he was right. Since he was living with the three men on the mansion, Tanjiro felt more need to be responsible and repay their generous hospitality by training hard daily with Rengoku-san, helping Senjuro-kun with household chores, and trying to decipher the writings in the destroyed book, and from time to time, both sit down at the engawa, eating sweets and talking about worldly things. Oh, Tanjiro loved those moments so much.
If only could be listening to Rengoku-san calm voice telling funny stories about his life for the rest of his days..
Tanjiro was relieved the red from his cheeks could be mistaken with the cold and exercise
What was weird, is how red Rengoku's face was out of nowhere. Was he this sweat soaked a moment before?
When he looked better at his face, Tanjiro could notice more how both of his cheeks turned into a heated reddish tone, as if he was running kilometers, which wasn't the case. In fact, the blonde man didn't noticed any of this.
Kyojurou blinked, tilting his head a little "...Is something wrong?"
Tanjiro gasped. Oh no...this was serious. But he had to do something first, no matter how shameful could be doing a thing like this to a superior.
"I..I..I'm sorry, Rengoku-san, please excuse me!" his eyes closed ashamed of what he was going to do, and suddenly his hands touched the Hashira's face. Making Rengoku open in shock his healthy eye without moving, only watching the young Kamado standing on tiptoe to match his height. In a second, Kyojurou felt his own forehead next to the other one.
Once he checked it, he could finally confirm everything.
"..Rengoku-san, you have fever!" Tanjiro said, looking at him with the same concern that he had had until now during his stay at the Butterfly mansion, "You can't be outside on this state!"
"What?..But I-"
"Please come back inside, you need to lie down and get cold right away!"
Kyojurou was again back on his futon, unable to stop the young man on his desperation to try to get the sudden high fever to come down, when he lied down on the bed, his voice wanted to leave his throat sofly "Kamado-"
"I will ask Senjuro-kun to get cold cloths and water, just don't move so much"
He left a confused and very ashamed Kyojurou alone.
It was a matter of time that even his younger brother would get also worried just like Tanjiro. According to the fast letter that arrived from the crow, Shinobu declared how Rengoku-san's body could be still in a delicate state, even though he seems to have regained his strength during rehabilitation, he had suffered a severe fever after surgery and during the months he was in a coma. Therefore, he must rest until it disappears.
"Hm..so that was the reason, I see" Rengoku crossed his arms thoughtfully, appearing very surprised by this fact "I didn't got sick since I was a child"
"Aniue, I'll go out now to search for the medicine, don't force yourself too much"
"Don't worry, Senjuro! Just take care when you go to the town"
With the usual kindness the youngest of the Rengoku family always had, gave a grateful bow to Tanjiro for looking after his brother's health, and the other boy smiled as well. Kyojurou saw him leave the house while his tsugoku stay sitting next to him, trying to cool down his forehead every so often with damp cloths.
The older one opened his eye slowly, feeling so sleepy since he woke up this morning, without considering it can be because of the fever "My boy...you shouldn't be doing any of this" the weariness in his voice was more and more obvious as hours passed.
Tanjiro noticed a mixed scent of shame and repentance coming from him..like he actually was feeling embarrased of being sick and getting cared of. He understood this feeling very well
"You're wrong, Rengoku-san. As a tsugoku I can't ignore your health, please stop apologizing" the boy said in a serious but sweet tone, showing a sad smile on his lips as continued speaking, lowering his gaze "I..I couldn't do nothing but wait until you opened your eyes months ago, for me this is a way to help you more than I wished before"
Kyojurou went silent as the boy talks. Only some heartbeats resonated in his ears as he keep looking at him.
Carefully, he placed the cold cloth on his face again, avoiding soaking him and touching part of the scar on his eye. Then, the gentle boy spoke again in whispers, "Sleep for a bit more"
Kyojuro nooded, closing his eyes once more.
An hour later, the fever seemed to rise again, making Rengoku sweat and have slight tremors due to the cold he was feeling.
"Rengoku-san.." Tanjiro saw him breathing heated with his chest shrunken, taking the cloth that was starting to get hot again and began to dip it in a bowl of cold water.
His heart was very hurt the more he saw him like this, lying on a bed again and suffering pain, unable to do anything to alleviate from discomfort
His small calloused hand approached the blonde's cheek until stroking him very slowly, while the other hand rubbed with the cold fabric his jaw and neck
Tanjiro could feel himself wandering among his memories..memories of his family, his younger siblings getting sick, doing the same movements. For a moment, he was again with them, watching Hanako over the night because she catch a cold. The fever causing her having nightmares, but Tanjiro hugged her, stroking her hair and talking carefully
It's okay... I'm here..
And his lips kissed the forehead.
"..Tanjiro.."
When the burgundy opened again his eyes, he saw Kyojurou, who had just woke up, looking at him dizzy and a little surprised for what the boy did now. He started blinking and his mind returned back to earth. Did..did he just-?
Tanjiro was finally realizing now he's hugging Rengoku, lying on the futon next to him
"R-Rengoku-san...I'm..I'm so sorry! I-I didn't meant to, It was something I always did to my siblings when they were sick as a charm" his hands tried to let go of him and separate from the blonde, he was blushing so intense and too nervous to look directly at his eyes
"Wait, Tanjiro" Kyojurou stopped him from staying away by grabbing his hand, his voice still sounded tired and quite sleepy, it was on that moment the young Kamado looked at him again, noticing a curious smell of desperation that he had never perceived before on the Pillar, and continued speaking "I'm not mad about what you did right now, and..can I ask you to do it again?"
"You want me to do it?"
"Yes" exclaimed Rengoku, like he needed another kiss so much to the point of even turning his lips into a small pout "You said it was a charm, right? Then could you give me some more until I'm healthy again?" said as he squinted his eyelids, bringing the small hand to his cheek
It's because the fever Tanjiro thought to himself. It was caused from the fever to act like this, and would probably forget it later, but a part of him couldn't deny the squeeze of his heart with how cute Rengoku-san is, he didn't seem to be the older of the two right now. He's so adorable asking for forehead kisses just like his little brothers and sisters did
"Okay" the boy agreed on his petition and got closer again, also lying down on the futon. Kyojurou was waiting patiently to receive the charm that can cure the fever. Now that Tanjiro was conscious of his acts felt more shy than before doing it, but he also really wanted to do this, filling his chest with tingling and warmth while putting tiny kisses that were greeted with sighs of relief.
"..It feels nice.." He kept closing his eyes without separating his hand from his.
He wanted to make sure that all the fever was completely gone, and without thinking too much kissed all the areas with excess heat that he wanted with all his might to relieve. The forehead, the bright red cheeks...
An iris of a beautiful red and amber reflected his face for a second, paling into a gray and silver on the other one, Kyojurou raised his chin a little until his lips slowly joined together.
A small but innocent kiss, which paralyzed the young man for a brief moment, and who began to repeat it once again with some eagerness. He didn't think, he didn't reason it. The impulse of his entire body was making him search for it and not hold back anymore.
Both broke apart taking air, panting a little bit and trembling mutually as they opened their eyes.
Finally, the blonde smiled and confirm it with an affirmative sound "Mm! It was a good magic charm indeed"
Tanjiro chuckled with this response.
"May I have it again once I'm free of any sickness?"