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It’s a quiet night. Not a single sound besides the heavy breathing and rapid footsteps of Tanjiro. Nothing to worry about, he’s done this countless times. Find the demon, and cut its head off. Simple as that.
Though never in a million years would Tanjiro have been able to guess what he would find when he arrived. A scared family? People running? Maybe even a non demon slayer trying to fend off the demon on their own. Whatever it was, he was ready to face it. He will do anything he can to protect those around him.
As he got closer and closer, there was a distinct scent that he noticed was getting more prominent the further he went. It was the smell of blood. But not any blood, no, he recognizes this one.
ʚɞ
Tanjiro’s closest friends are Inosuke Hashibira and Zenitsu Agatsuma. Sure, they were a little crazy sometimes, but they were amazing friends and team members. Definitely not the kind of people he pictured himself being stuck with, but he couldn’t be more grateful for them. Even when Zenitsu harasses his little sister.
However, over time Tanjiro started to feel a deeper connection with Zenitsu. Not that he prefers him over Inosuke, he could never choose between the two. But something about the way Zenitsu smiled and always clung onto him to seek comfort always made his heart skip a beat. Everything about him started to seem so…perfect.
Tanjiro’s feelings for Zenitsu weren’t even really something he tried to hide, he always stayed close to his side and stared at him a little longer than normal. He doesn’t know where these feelings came from, but they started to almost feel like instincts, he had to be near him and protect him, no matter what.
If Tanjiro could confess to him—
Wait, didn’t he already do that? No, no he’s getting mixed up. Wow, his memory’s been foggy lately, maybe once he finally gets some rest, he’ll be back to normal. He needs to focus.
ʚɞ
That smell… It’s blood, without a doubt. But why does it smell so familiar? Why does it smell like…
It hits him.
His running comes to a stop, he grips tightly onto his sword. Standing face to face with demons isn’t as intimidating as it used to be, so why was he hyperventilating? Last time he checked, he wasn’t showing any signs of sickness or anything.
He goes straight for the demon, he cannot waste any time with something like this. But that smell sure was bothering him… His movements get a bit sloppy due to the distraction. God damn it, Tanjiro, get yourself together.
ʚɞ
As his sword finally goes through the neck of the demon, he notices something from the corner of his eye. Someone familiar lying on the ground, it’s hard to tell exactly who it is from all the blood surrounding them. But upon further inspection, he sees…
“ZENITSU!!!” Tanjiro screams at the top of his lungs, enough to permanently damage his vocal cords for sure. He doesn’t even bother to properly sheathe his sword, none of that matters.
He drops to his knees in front of the body of his best friend, the boy he loves so much. He can’t really be dead, right? There’s no way he’s gone! Tanjiro grabs Zenitsu by the shoulders and shakes him aggressively. If this guy doesn’t respond, he might just die on the spot from a panic attack.
He starts to feel sick to his stomach, the silence is killing him, literally. The sight of Zenitsu’s body limp and bloody in his arms is gonna make him throw up all his organs. He wants to scream and cry, maybe even pull his hair out. He can’t think straight at all, he feels dizzy, so dizzy he might pass out.
Everything is spinning, God, help him. He hyperventilates to the point where it hurts to breathe normally. All he wanted to do was tell Zenitsu how he loved him, How could something like this happen? There’s no way that weak demon killed him, it’s just not possible… Zenitsu is so strong, despite his constant whining and fear. That’s one of the things Tanjiro loved about him.
The demon was gone, but so was Zenitsu. Tanjiro doesn’t feel the slightest bit of accomplishment from this mission.
He doesn’t even have time to think about calling for help before he completely blacks out. And next thing he knows, he’s bolting up in bed, covered in sweat and his heart is beating like crazy.
What the fuck was that?
ʚɞ
“Tanjiro… Are you alright?” He hears a quiet and very sleepy voice call for him. He slowly looks to his right, and sees Zenitsu in a bed next to his. He looks perfectly fine, somehow…
Tanjiro is still recovering from the aftershock of what he just saw, he can’t even think of what to say to Zenitsu. He just stares and waits for something to happen. He's not sure what he expects to happen, he still waits despite that.
Zenitsu notices the state Tanjiro’s in, he looks very unwell, and quite feverish. He slowly sits up and gets out of his bed, then he walks over to Tanjiro’s bed and sits on the edge of it. He doesn’t say anything, he knows he won’t be getting any answers right now. He stays patient, gently rubbing Tanjiro’s arm to make him feel better.
And it works, any amount of comfort from Zenitsu is enough to make Tanjiro feel better in the blink of an eye. Tanjiro begins to whisper, his voice is rough and exhausted.
“Zen, is this—?“ He can’t even finish his question, Zenitsu just hugs him tightly. The warmth tells him all he needs to know, Zenitsu’s okay, he’s here. Tanjiro holds him close, he tries not to hug too tightly in fear that he’d hurt him. He holds him almost like he’s some delicate work of art, which to Tanjiro, he absolutely is.
“J-Just take some deep breaths, okay? You look pale.” Zenitsu mumbles weakly, he’s worried as hell right now. Tanjiro just nods and does what he says, he slowly takes some deep breaths to calm himself.
Zenitsu looks up at Tanjiro with teary eyes, his hold on him is pretty painful, but Tanjiro doesn’t mind.
“You scared me so much… I-I thought you died in your sleep!” Zenitsu presses his face into Tanjiro’s shoulder. “Never do that again, I might accidentally wake everyone else with my screaming.”
He pauses for a moment and continues to hug Tanjiro tightly, all he can manage to say now is a pathetic, weak whisper.
“I love you so much.”
Tanjiro doesn’t get any time to process everything, but he doesn’t mind. He closes his eyes and whispers back.
“I… I Love you too, Zen…”
So that’s it, right? He was just having a terrible nightmare, that’s all. Nothing is wrong with Zenitsu, and everything is okay. Zenitsu is safe in his arms, maybe now he can get a proper and peaceful sleep.
ʚɞ
The rest of the night is calm, no nightmares, nothing. Nothing at all.
The sun eventually starts to rise, Tanjiro shuffles around in his sleep a little. He slowly regains consciousness as the morning light shines into the room. It’s comfortable, he feels happy before he even fully manages to wake up. But whenever happiness is destroyed, it’s always followed by the smell of blood.