#didn't they turn out well!?!? it really looks like Rengoku-san is eating them!

[silverynight]

To hold a heart

Even though Shinobu is sure Kyojuro doesn't enjoy the injuries or the fact that he has to wear an eye patch over his face, she also knows he likes Tanjirou's undivided attention.

Honestly... Tanjirou worries too much; Kyojuro has to wear bandages all over his chest, but he's alright now, he can move and train again and hasn't lost his strength; his body is still as well built as it was before.

That day, when Tanjirou arrives to pay him a visit, he finds the Rengoku brothers and Shinobu in the backyard.

She has noticed that Senjuro is a little bit confused about his older brother's attitude whenever Tanjirou is around; the flame hashira usually doesn't stay long in the butterfly mansion when he comes back hurt from a mission, even though he's kind to everyone there, he's not usually patient when it comes to stay still so a kakushi could check on his wounds.

Oh but when Tanjirou is the one fussing over him it's a completely different story.

Even though Shinobu rolls her eyes whenever Kyojuro's grin becomes impossibly wide when Tanjirou is around, she must admit she really enjoys watching the flame hashira turn into a flustered mess in front of the boy.

She's sure Kyojuro is incapable of being subtle, his fiery eye is always staring at Tanjirou and glimmering with so much happiness she knows everyone in the butterfly estate has realized what's going on.

But the dear sunshine Tanjirou is painfully oblivious.

"How are you feeling today, Rengoku-san?" The boy asks, putting a hand over the Pillar's cheek, prompting the other to melt into the touch almost immediately.

"I'm perfectly fine now, my boy!" Kyojuro smiles. Next to him his little brother is watching the scene with curiosity.

"Aoi told me the girls will remove your bandages today, I'm glad!" Tanjirou beams.

"I'd prefer if you removed them, my boy," Kyojuro mumbles, rubbing the back of his neck. It's weird to see him nervous, but somehow amusing at the same time.

Senjuro probably thinks the same, judging by the way he covers his mouth to hold back a chuckle.

"Of course, Rengoku-san! I'd love to help you!" Tanjirou nods with a smile. Then, he takes out a bento box and hands it to the flame hashira. "Here. For you."

Kyojuro's eye glimmers with joy, for a moment Shinobu is sure she can see flames inside it. If Tanjirou didn't have the hashira's heart in his hands already he would have made Kyojuro fall for him at that exact moment.

"Thank you, my boy."

"You must be starving," Tanjirou comments, not knowing that the flame hashira has been eating the whole time before the boy walked into to the estate. "You've been looking at me with hunger since I arrived."

Shinobu can't help but burst into laughter as Kyojuro blushes to the tip of his ears. Even Senjuro knows what's going on and he politely looks away from his brother as he tries to hide his laughter with a cough.

"Yes, I'm h-hungry," Kyojuro stammers for the first time since Shinobu met him.

However, something changes on his face; Shinobu quickly covers Senjuro's eyes as Kyojuro takes Tanjirou and sits him on his lap before the boy can even blink at him.

"Rengoku-san? What's going–" but the boy can't finish the sentence because desperate lips are suddenly pressed against his own. After the initial surprise though, Tanjirou closes his eyes and kisses the flame hashira back.

Kyojuro grabs Tanjirou by the back of his neck to tilt the boy's head the way he wants it to deepen the kiss.

"Is my brother finally kissing him?" Senjuro asks, prompting Tanjirou to pull away from the hashira as the blush spreads down his neck.

Shinobu takes her hands away from Senjuro's eyes just in time for the boy to watch Kyojuro move Tanjirou closer to kiss him all over the face.

"No, wait! Not here," Tanjirou squeaks, noticing that there are also a few kakushi there that seem to find the scene really interesting. He tries to gently push the other away, but the Pillar chuckles and takes his hand to kiss the boy's palm softly, almost lovingly.

"Will you marry me?"

"We haven't even gone on a date yet!" Tanjirou protests, however that doesn't change at all Kyojuro's determined expression.

"Alright, how many dates do I need to take you out on in order for you to say yes to my proposal?"

Realizing that nothing will change the Pillar's mind and that he's sure about his feelings for Tanjirou, the boy's worried expression turns into a fond smile.

"Fine. Let's get married, Kyojuro-san!" Tanjirou finally agrees, making the hashira beam at him before pulling him closer for another kiss.

As Shinobu rolls her eyes, she covers Senjuro's again, although he seems really happy for his older brother.

***

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[demonslayedher]

Obligatory recipe preamble: I hate cooking. I'll try it out if it has a Kimetsu no Yaiba theme, though, and for this episode of Kimetsu Kitchen, we're making Rengoku-san's favorite. Not just satsuma-imo (sweet potatoes), but specifically, satsuma-imo miso soup! There's also a couple bonus Mugen Train related recipes (no, we're not preparing a meal of over 200 sleepy passengers).

Let me start by saying I'm not a huge fan of satsuma-imo. Among sweet gourds and potatoes and chestnuts, I find them irritatingly sweet without being a satisfying sweet. I can eat them, but I find their flavor overpoweringly like a waxy feeling all over my mouth. Anything for Rengoku-san, though.

That also meant making miso soup. I have never, ever been good at making miso soup, even the kind that comes in instant packets. I rarely buy miso because I live alone, don't have that many recipes I like using it in, and the packages tend to be huge and last so long that I can never trust the "best consumed by" date because I leave the package open so long before I can get remotely close to finishing it. However, that meant I was able to experiment day after day with failed miso soup recipe before hitting upon a method I felt confident using for this recipe.

What most recipes will tell you is you don't boil miso soup. Sounds fake, but ok. The other thing you see in miso soup commercials is that they put some of the hot dashi broth in a ladle held in the left hand over the pot, and then stir it with chopsticks held in the right hand. I am talented with chopsticks but not a ladle. I failed at this many times. I suppose I shall never be a Japanese bride. Shufu fail. The way I Gaijin Smash my way through miso soup is to put the miso paste in an entirely separate bowl and stir it with two spoons which I can use to spread out the clumps. Which it pulverized to my liking, I pour it back in with the hot/warm dashi and other ingredients and give it a stir.

For the rest of my meal, I made an Enbashira Haori Salad (with a bed of daikon, and since daikon are huge I later used the rest of it for second attempts at Giyuu & Muichiro's favorite foods), and had shijimi clams with my rice because they are supposed to be good for your liver, so they're the kind of thing Rengoku-san would had encouraged his father to eat. My Rengoku-san cup is filled with water as opposed to liquid fire, though.

Finally, I had grilled salmon picked up as-is from the grocery store both because I didn't feel like cooking another dish and because this was my dinner the previous night. If you follow Kimetsu Academy, you know. You know.

As for the results of the satsuma-imo miso soup?

It would be an exaggeration to say that I shouted "UMAI" but I did, totally legit, take one bite and make a big,

MM!!!!

sound. I was very surprised just how good it tasted! I think what really did it for me was that instead of being any old miso soup, it had a brightness to it thanks to the satsuma-imo, but the miso was what really served the potato. It brought out the savory undertones I really appreciate in gourds and root vegetables that lean a bit to the sweet side, like the saltiness smoothed that overpoweringly waxy sweetness so I could appreciate the wider flavor profile of the potato. I would love to repeat this success!!

However, it should be noted that because single-sized portions of miso soup can be a pain, I would up eating two portion sizes and it was a very yomoya-yomoyada night. That, and I still had half a sweet potato...

Anyway, I checked back on that Taisho Secret in the first fanbook where we first learn that sweet potatoes make Rengoku-san shout "WASSHOI," and found a few other culinary details.

"He had a gyunabe bentou (beef hotpot boxed lunch) on the train. His favoite bentou side dish is salted and grilled tai (sea bream), and satsuma-imo gohan for the rice. When he eats satsuma-imo he says wasshoi wasshoi." Although I don't recall what first it was, that means the beef bentou I had at the winter 2021 collaboration with the Kyoto Railway Museum was perhaps one of the more accurate takes on Rengoku-san's bentou out there. While I didn't feel like dealing with fish, like I said, I still had more sweet potato. So I made satuma-imo gohan! Sweet potato in rice! I don't feel like telling you what English-language food bloggers will do better, go follow a recipe like this.

Thinking back to food on the train, maybe Tanjiro didn't wind up eating any bentou apart from what Rengoku-san stuffed down his throat in the opening theme, but there were a lot of mentions of food with the Kamado family.

Like... making senbei out of old rice cakes! But that would require having a way to grill rice cakes, and like, having rice cakes... so I just bought senbei to snack on instead.

Or... making takuan to steal from your brother! I did still have lots of daikon, after all, why not try pickling it like the Kamado family would? Because I've read this can be a stinky practice, that's why. My kitchen has no window, no thank you. I bought takuan for a side dish instead.

Mountain greens? No thank you, I've already suffered through tara-no-me.

If we turn to some other Taisho Secrets, though, there were a few exclusively printed in the booklet handed out at the first showings of Mugen-Ressha in Japan. To borrow from my translation of them which can be found here...

"What was Tanjirou’s mother most skilled at cooking? Tanjirou’s mother was very skilled at cooking, she made a wide variety depending on each season. She also really liked trying out regional recipes that other people shared with her. Her children’s favorites were sanma-no-soba dumplings and tofu baked in miso. (Translation note: Sanma-no-soba dango is a rural dish from the Nagano area, a decent distance northwest from where Tanjirou’s family lived (see my post about canon geography here). It has a piece of mackerel pike wrapped in a dough made of buckwheat flour.)" Let me say that I appreciate Kie, perhaps even project on her a bit, since I have a mole in the same spot and have feelings toward Tanjiro and Nezuko which can be described as "My Son" and "My Daughter." That, and I've been curious about those sanma soba dumplings ever since learning of them through this Taisho Secret.

...I dislike cooking, so my similarities with Kie end here. However, the photos of the process of making this rural snack in a traditional irori style hearth do strongly tempt me to travel to Nagano just for the sake of finding some Obaasans to teach (as in, do it for me), because wow, that is aesthetic. So that left me to make Tofu Dengaku, that is, baked tofu with a miso glaze. After all, I still had have tons of miso. I don't feel like teaching you how to do it badly, go read a foodie blog. I will say that perhaps unlike the majority of my blog readers, I love tofu. I love eating it (but I don't play cello), and I don't mind cooking with it because even if I get it wrong I still find it palatable. That's good, because there were big mouthfuls of tofu here to go with my satsuma-imo gohan and takuan pickles I picked up from the store. I had bought a nice new jar of turmeric with the intention of attempting takuan, but instead I just stir-fried my mushrooms with it. Mushrooms are totally something Kamado children would eat with their mountain greens, right?

Both the satsuma-imo gohan and tofu dengaku were supposed to be decorated in sesame seeds, but I did not have any. I had pure black sesame seed spread though! Like the fun of eating charcoal without the silly (and dangerous) food-fadiness of it! This also tends to have a waxy, over-powering flavor which I find often needs some sweetness to bring out its nice flavors (like pairing it with honey on toast), or perhaps the saltiness of the miso to help bring out the other sides of its flavors. So that's what those big black globs are. Learn from my mistake, maybe don't put big globs of this stuff on anything. Oh, and the decorative little yellow spot is mustard. You know. Because fancy.

I've had... better dengaku, we'll put it that way.

And the rice? Well, there was mirin in the recipe, which seemed to make the sweet satsuma-imo even sweeter, which I just didn't enjoy much in a rice dish. No 'wasshoi' or 'umai' outta me on this one, but hey, I tried.

[fangirlsmood]

Tomioka Giyuu x reader - inferiority complex

Summary : Noticing how Giyuu doesn't know his own worth, you try to remedy his inferiority complex.

Warnings : Spoilers about Giyuu’s past.

author notes : Seeing our little Giyuu blame and put himself down breaks my heart, it's time for someone to comfort him and tell him what an amazing person he is.

_ Tomioka-san ! 

Hearing your voice, Giyuu stopped in his walk and turned to you, nodding his head to greet you. You noticed that he was holding a bunch of papers, probably a mission report he had to return to Oyakata-sama.

_ You’re already back ! After filing your report, would you accept ...

_ No.

_ But...

You've been begging him for a while to train you. He had saved you a few months ago from a demon and since then you had only one wish: to become like him. You were infinitely grateful to him and you were so admiring. Not really knowing how to fight but wanting to be useful you had started to help at the Butturfly estate. However you wanted to do more, you wanted to save people before they could get hurt like Giyuu had done for you.

_ Ask another person.

_ Kocho-san is already taking care of Kanao, Rengoku of his little brother ... Everyone else is too busy to spend time with me. I want you to train me... please.

He looked you straight in the eye for a moment then sighed, unable to resist your perseverence :

_ Fine. I will train you but don't expect me to be a good teacher.

Since that day Giyuu trained you every time he return from a mission. You couldn't be happier. The training was difficult, tiring and sometimes painful but for you it was an honor. Even if he didn’t said it Giyuu was proud to see your progress. Besides, it was nice for him to have company. 

•••••••••••

One day, at the end of a hashira meeting, Rengoku came to approach him.

_ Tomioka ! We don't see much anymore (Y/n) at the Butterfly estate. I heard that you train her.

 He nodded, Rengoku let out one of his loud laughs :

_ It's surprising ! I had offered to train her but she had refused. Is she doing well?

_ She’s not bad.

It was surprising indeed. You told him that no one was available to train you and he learned it was a lie. Why had you been lying to him? He didn't understand what you could gain from it.

••••••••••

That night he found you serving dinner for both of you like you did almost every day since you had become his student. 

_ Welcome home ! How was the meeting ?

_ Good.

His gaze immediately made you uncomfortable. Usually he always gave you a warm look, while now he was looking at you coldly, as if he had difficulty recognizing you. He took a seat in front of you and began to eat. After a heavy silence which weighed on him as well as on you, he decided to speak :

_ Why did you lie to me ?

You did not remember having committed such an act against him. Seeing your confused stare he developed his point :

_ Rengoku told me he offered to train you. Why did you tell me that no one has time for you ?

You didn't think he would find out someday. Nothing in his attitude or his voice let show anger but you knew he was necessarily upset. Giyuu was a man of his word and honor, for him a lie was a lack of respect. You were terribly ashamed, however, you manage to stammer an explanation :

_ Oh ! It’s not what you think ! In fact it is but... I mean I didn’t really thought about it... Believe me it was far from my intentions to disrespect you, I would have never offended you on purpose ! I just... I just wanted to be trained by you.

_ Rengoku is a really good and strong man. You should have accepted his proposal. 

He marked a pause.

_ Go back to him, if you ask him I think his offer still stands.

Was Giyuu denying you? Did he no longer want you as a student? He got up and turned his back to you as if to end this discussion but you got up in turn, you wanted to stay by his side: 

_ I don’t want anyone else to train me ! 

_ It would be better for you.  He will be able to take care of you and make you evolve. 

Suddenly you realized what was going on. Giyuu thought Rengoku was a better hashira than him. Didn't he know how strong he was too? You stood in front of him so you could look him in the eye, so he would know you weren't lying :

_ You’re strong too. And you’re a good professor. 

_ You don’t know what you’re talking about. I am stronger than you that’s all. 

_ You’re a hashira ! You’re one of the strongest !

He lowered his head you saw in his eyes, him who was usually so impassive, a hint of sadness.

_ I don't deserve this title. I shouldn't be there.

_ What do you mean ? 

You noticed that his hands tightened on his haori.The words struggled out of his throat, as if part of him wanted to hold them back while another wanted to get them out :

_  Those who owned the two parts of this haorie should be there, they should be alive. Them, not me.

It was the first time Giyuu had talked about his past. You kept silent, you didn't want to rush him. You just wanted to understand him, reassure him, make him feel surrounded. 

_ (Y/n)... I know you admire me and it's nice to have someone so dedicated by my side but you don't know everything. You idealize me. I am not a strong. I am not a good person.

One of his hand clenched the red part of his haorie :

_ I wasn’t strong enough to protect my sister...

His other hand clenched on the other part :

_ I shouldn't have passed the Demon Slayer exam ... Sabito should have, he was much stronger, much better in everything, but he protected me and it cost him his life.

You were speechless. Knowing that Giyuu, who was so generous, strong and usually impassive, had suffered so much broke your heart. You wanted to cry for him but you knew it would only cause drama. You will cry another day, now you needed to cheer up your beloved master.

_ Rengoku will know how to protect you, you will be safe with him. 

••••••••••

The next morning Giyuu couldn't find you anywhere. He assumed you had chosen to join Rengoku. He was sure it was the best option and it suited him for the moment. He felt ridiculous for confiding in you last night, and was too embarrassed to see you again. Nevertheless he had become so used to your presence that he already missed you. Part of him regretted telling you to leave. 

Fortunately you came back little less than a month after your departure and with a surprise. You ran to him yelling a "tomioka-san" as a greeting before handing him a package. A little taken aback he examined it for a moment. Impatient you pressed him a little : 

_   It's a gift for you! Open it !

He followed your instructions and found a nice little bundle of papers taht were of different sizes and different colors. The writings and the ink used were also diverse. You started to explain nervously :

_ I wanted you to know how amazing you are, so I asked the hashira, your old master and a few of the people you saved to write down what they liked about you or what you had did good for them ... Oyakata-sama and Gyomei-san could’nt write but they dictated to me and I transcribed everything ... I didn't think it would take so long to contact everyone, sorry ... 

He had already started to read. Everyone had written something even Obanai, Sanemi and Shinobu had found a few nice things to say. Shinobu had recounted a mission accomplished with Giyuu and admitted that without him it would have been a failure while Obanai and Sanemi were content to write a single sentence where they said that Giyuu was not "that bad" and that "some of these techniques were quite impressive". Urokodaki gently reprimand him so that he would stop always blaming himself and telling him that he was proud of him. 

And finally there was your letter. It was the longest and as he read it he wanted to cry with joy. He wondered what he had done to deserve so much praise, he wanted to deny all these compliments but you had written a real reasoning full of examples to support your words that he was obliged to recognize his qualities. 

He felt his heart melt. it must have taken so much effort from you to collect all these little words, it was a real treasure that you had just offered him. You watched him silently in his reading which lasted a long time and since he didn't say anything you wondered if it was really a good idea :

_ Erm... Do you like it ? It's okay if you don't, but keep them anyway. That way you could always reread them when you needed to ... you know ... know how amazing you are.

A smile covered his face and you noticed that his eyes were bright like a child who discovers the world. His smile was so faint you might not have noticed though it was the sweetest you've ever seen. 

_ Thank you. It's the nicest thing anyone's done for me. It must have taken a lot of effort from you to convince Obanai, Sanemi and Kocho and put it all together.

_ You deserve all the effort in the world.

You gave him a huge smile and he believed you. He felt all the weight he had on his heart, all his guilt shut up in the face of all these kind words. For the first time Giyuu told himself not only that he was lucky to have you by his side but also that he deserved to be happy. Every time he read one of the letters he said to himself, although it was still hard for him not to doubt it, that he was worthy. More than feeling worthy, he felt loved.

••••••••••

Navigation

[tamayosclinic]

So, I saw this post somewhere and had to request it! Can we get Rengoku with slight hearing loss and the first time his crush confesses, he doesn't hear? He just kinda goes, "Mhhm!" And so his crush starts avoiding him because they thought he didn't like them?

Miscommunication | Kyojuro x GN!S/O

Warning(s): None

Author's Note(s): I almost made this into a x nurse!s/o but decided against it for the sake of open interpretation so each of you can decide whether reader is a nurse or a demon slayer residing at the Butterfly estate. Aside from that I have one more request to do then we will commence the 100+ followers event sometime within this week. Enjoy this oneshot.

Word Count: 958

(Y/n) roamed the Butterfly estate with their head higher than usual and a spring in their step scanning each room they passed clearly looking for something. Or someone. Coming across Shinobu down the hall, they called out to her. “Is Kyojuro this here?”

“Ara. Already passed formalities I see.” Shinobu teased, causing (Y/n) to cover their flushed face, a reaction that had Shinobu giggling. “I just finished with him. He’s in his quarters now. You should hurry, he will be leaving soon.”

“Right! See you later Shinobu!” (Y/n) dismissed themselves, rushing to the other wing of the estate where the Hashira rooms were.

A smile spread across their face from ear to ear as they heard Kyojuro’s booming voice echo from his room. “Umai!” He proclaimed with a short pause in between.

Oh perfect. I could keep him company while he eats. (Y/n) thought eagerly, knocking lightly on the wooden frame of the shoji.

Kyojuro would not have heard it had he not been in the middle of chewing his food. “Come in!” A dorky smile spread across his face midchew upon seeing (Y/n) enter the room and sit across from him. “(Y/n)! Pleasure seeing you now!”

“Talk or chew, not both at once Kyo.” (Y/n) teased, staring at him with a similar dorky smile and finding that his handsomeness seemed to be amplified as he finished the rest of his food. He’s so adorable, they thought as he finished his food. They cleared their throat before Kyojuro could strike up a conversation, not wanting to get distracted from the reason they sought him out in the first place.

“Kyo, I’ve been meaning to tell you something as of late.” Kyojuro hummed though, unknown to (Y/n), it was because he could not hear them well. Clutching their chest tightly to stifle the heat radiating off them, they confessed in a whispered voice. “I love you Kyo.”

“Mhm!” Kyojuro nodded causing (Y/n) to hum in confusion at the response. There was a long awkward silence in the room as both waited for the other to speak. (Y/n) finally broke it with an awkward laugh.

“I guess I should go now.”

“Yes! I’m sure you have other things to do! Thanks for stopping by!” Kyojuro boomed. His words pierced (Y/n)’s heart leaving a sting that coursed throughout their body as they walked out. The need to cry won so (Y/n) rushed to their room to cry in solitude.

…

“Kocho-san!” Kyojuro scared the aforementioned Hashira with his loud voice. Shinobu turned in her seat to give him her full attention. It was surprising for her to see him with a concerned looked rather than his bright smile. “Did something happen to (Y/n)? I saw them in the courtyard but once the moment I called out to them, they walked away. I’m sure I saw them crying too.”

“Really Rengoku-san? You should know why that’s so.” Shinobu answered. Her voice had the usual silvery tone, but her words were laced with a poison that nearly made Kyojuro fear of her lacing out at him. Kyojuro could only hum in confusion and Shinobu titled her head. “Did you say something to them? Or did they tell you anything?”

“Yes- well no. They did say something to me before they left but I couldn’t hear them, so I just stayed silent.”

Shinobu quickly put two and two together and giggled. “I see. It appears there has been a miscommunication. You need to go clear it up with them right away.”

“Will do!” Kyojuro proclaimed, dismissing himself from the room.

…

(Y/n) had finished the morning routine early even with their efforts to avoid crossing paths with Kyojuro again now that they knew he was here. Now they were roaming around the hallways keeping themselves busy. The temptation to go see Kyojuro was overwhelming but they knew avoiding him was for the best if they wanted to get over him sooner than later. Unfortunately (at least for now), the universe would not allow that. The first person they laid eyes on as they turned a corner was Kyojuro himself.

“(Y/n)!” He smiled in that dorky fashion which, even now, squeezed all the blood from (Y/n)’s heart.

Still, it was wrong to feel that way towards him so (Y/n) turned in the opposite direction and ran around the estate to reach their door. Sliding the shoji shut, (Y/n) sighed heavily from the sprint and rest against the frame of the door. They yelped when Kyojuro slid the shoji back open and embraced them in his arms which they admitted were warm just as they had imagined in their dreams.

“(Y/n) it’s come to my attention that there may have been a miscommunication on my part. During our last conversation, you wanted to ask me something, but I was not able to hear it. I’m partially deaf because of a past battle!”

So that’s why he’s so loud most of the time, (Y/n) surmised.

“Can we start this over again? What was it you wanted to tell me?” Kyojuro glanced down at them, his lips brushed their cheek as they did so cause them to blush.

So close! “I-I just wanted to say… I love you Kyo.” They stammered. Both of them were blushing equally hard within seconds. “I understand if you don’t feel the same, but I just had to get it off my chest.”

“Are you kidding?! I love you too (Y/n)!” Kyojuro cheered, causing (Y/n) to wriggle uncomfortably in his arms. He realized that he practically shouted in their ear and lowered his voice enough to where it was barely a whisper. “Sorry. But it's true. I love you.” (Y/n) turned in the embrace and returned the hug.

"I love you too, Kyo."

[knylinphd]

kyojuro x fem!reader | cold

kyojuro rengoku x reader

female reader

Kyojuro can't help but fall in love with the new ice pillar, even though she keeps giving him the cold shoulder.

no warning

          (Y/N) had been a pillar for a few weeks when Kyojuro realized she was very interesting. At first, he had thought it was admiration. Indeed, she had amazing breath techniques, and ice wasn't a common element to use. And the fact that her haori was quite psychedelic, fitting with the ice pattern, was making her catch his attention even when he didn't mean to look at her. And oh, how beautiful she was. He didn't know if she knew how pretty she was.

Actually, he didn't know much about her, because everytime he would try to talk to her, she would give him short answers and not try to discuss more. But throughout time, it became his habit to try to make her talk more to him, and even turned his common sentences into flirty ones -he noticed it had more impact on the pillar. And today was no exception.

''(L/N)-san, good morning ! How are you today ?'' Kyojuro asked. ''Fine.'' The ice pillar simply answered. The man actually sat next to her to take his breakfast, and she didn't even shrug. ''Oh, don't give me the cold shoulder ! We're fire and ice ! We should mix !'' He said, a smile on his face. ''It would melt.'' The girl replied. Kyojuro gasped. ''It would melt only if my fire's stronger than your ice ! Does that mean you think I'm stronger than you ?!'' She only rolled her eyes, but the man took it as a compliment, still.

This discussion was usual between them, it was like an habit. But as it was quite obvious that the flame pillar liked his colleague, his friends just wanted that weird barrier they had between each other to be done with so he could finally ask her out. ''Why do you even like her ?'' Obanai asked. He wasn't one to talk, but he was quite bored right now and he had been annoyed by Kyojuro staring at (Y/N) training the future pillars for 10 minutes straight.

          ''How did Shinobu befriend her ?'' The flame pillar asked, not even answering the previous question. ''They both have the same kind of personality, I guess. But (L/N) doesn't wear the same weird smile all the time.'' Kyojuro nodded, still thinking it would be nice to see her smile, fake or not. ''I guess I'll ask Shinobu about (L/N), then.'' He replied, his eyes not getting off the ice pillar.

        ''Come on, who do you think is the most good-looking pillar ? Shinazugawa ?'' An obviously drunk Shinobu asked (Y/N). It was a girls night, and the 3 pillars were all tipsy. ''Why do you say that ? Cause he's one of those I talk to the most ?'' The ice pillar replied, Mitsuri nodding at the same time as Shinobu. ''No... Uh ! I really don't like him, but I think Rengoku is the most handsome one. His looks are very special.'' She replied, making her friends laugh. ''He catches the eye !'' Mitsuri said.

         ''You act so much like you don't like him but you really do.'' Shinobu replied. And with that, they all started to argue about how annoying the flame pillar was-or wasn't. ''You know what ? I'll be your wingman.'' Mitsuri said. ''For fuck's sake, why do I need a wingman for ?!'' The ice pillar asked, very irritated. ''So you can be with Rengoku ! Don't you like him ?'' Shinobu asked, that horrifying smile on her face intensifying. ''I told you ! So many times ! I don't !'' (Y/N) replied. ''You say that because deep down, you don't want to like him.'' The girl with pink and green hair said, a pout on her face.

        It made her friend sigh. ''He's everything I despise.'' She said, a bit quietly. ''Always yelling for anything, making a big deal out of everything, he's like an annoying version of Tengen ! And I don't even like Tengen that much !'' The ice pillar kept going for so long, it was just too obvious she actually liked him.

       That's why some days later, as all the pillars were having a dinner party, Shinobu and Mitsuri made the two pillars sit next to each other. And awkwardly, it made the flame pillar blush. Maybe because he hadn't planned this, since he usually was the one sitting there. But here, it was Mitsuri who had told him to sit there, and it was maybe also because (Y/N) wasn't wearing her usual clothes but something a bit lighter.

         ''(Y/N) ? Why won't you say something nice to Rengoku, now that you have to be forgiven for being cold all the time ?'' Shinobu asked, her smile creeping her friend out. ''You have to be forgiven for anything ?'' The flame pillar asked, his confidence back. ''I... really like your eyes.'' She said, not even looking at him. However, when she felt him staring at her, she turned to stare back, now that she was mad at him again. Shinobu was happy now, wasn't she ? (Y/N) could be her usual self !

         ''Why do you never fucking blink ? Aren't your eyes supposed to be all disgusting and stuff ?!'' She said, furrowing her eyebrows. ''I do blink.'' The flame pillar replied, quite calmly. ''No you don't !'' (Y/N) replied. ''Does it scare you ? You seem quite tense about it, I can blink if you want to.'' He said, but she only groaned and turned back to her food. ''First, you think I'm stronger than you. And now, I'm scaring you ! You really appreciate me, after all !'' He said, laughing. Way too loudly.

         ''I don't !'' The ice pillar replied, obviously annoyed. ''Come on, you're my favorite pillar ! Your breath style is the coolest one ! And I think you hate me only because you're scared that I can overpower you.'' He said, reading her like a book. (Y/N) opened her mouth, not finding anything to say, and only stuffed it with food so she could focus on something else. It only made Mitsuri and Shinobu laugh, which made her angrier than she already was.

        To tease her even more, Kyojuro asked, a grin on his face : ''Do you really think I'm the most good-looking pillar ?'' The girl's eyes widened, looking quickly towards her friends before turning her gaze to the man. ''OH MY GOD !'' However, out of the blue, some music was being played. It was a dinner party, after all. ''Do you want to dance ? Or are you scared that I'll be a greater dancer than you ?'' Kyojuro asked, offering his hand. 

         The ice pillar gasped, arching an eyebrow at him. ''I took dance classes for 8 years. I think I'm much better than you.'' She replied, taking his hand as a challenge 'only'. Mitsuri applauded silently her flame colleague at the gesture, and he smiled back at her. ''See how much I could learn about you if you were talking to me ?'' The flame pillar asked, his smile never fading. Nonetheless, it looked like a sad smile, this time. (Y/N) simply hummed as a reply, watching his steps as he tried to dance in synch with her. At first, she didn't care much about it.

         However, as he was stepping on her feet for the 26th time, the ice pillar decided to give him a lesson. ''You're not doing it good. Watch my feet. You have to step forward first, then on the left. It's a loop. You looked like a guy who knew how to dance, but apparently I'm really much better.'' She replied, actually escaping a faint smile at the struggle her colleague was going through. ''Oh, I get it now ! Thanks !'' Kyojuro said, now looking back into the girl's eyes, smiling.

        ''See how much I could learn from you, as well ?'' This time again, she simply hummed. ''Why don't you talk to me ? Is it really because I'm 'too much' ? Because you're really scared of me ? Because if we associated fire and ice during our missions, we would be sure to succeed.'' Kyojuro said, this time taking a very calm tone. It shocked the ice pillar, her face heating up. ''You are... really loud, indeed. But I'm not scared of you at all !'' She replied, making the man laugh. ''Well, if I calmed down with you until you're comfortable enough, will it be okay ? Cause I know you're quite loud when you hang out with the girls. I guess you just need to warm up a bit to the person you're talking to.''

         He was right, so she nodded. But she noticed a really small detail. ''Did you do a pun with the 'warm up' and the fact that you're the flame pillar ?'' Kyojuro laughed -quite loudly, he coughed after he realized it- that she had noticed it. ''And perhaps, we'll even go to dinner only together ? Don't worry, I'll take you somewhere fancy. I know you said I was the most good-looking pillar here, and I believe you've noticed how much I've been staring at you.'' He said.

        ''Calm down. Maybe then, I'll eat with you alone.'' She replied. ''We'll be the embodiment of 'someone will die -of fun' !'' He said, after gasping. It actually made (Y/N) snort. ''What the hell does that even mean ?'' She asked, smiling when he saw the weird face he was doing at her reaction. ''It means that you'll warm up to me and stop being so cold !'' He said, referring to their breath styles once again. ''If making you calmer meant making you say puns all the time, I don't know if I actually prefer you loud.'' She said, making Kyojuro laugh once again. He had finally broken the glass, and he couldn't be happier. She was finally opening up to him.

[silverynight]

The celebration

Tanjirou is very much surprised when he arrives to the butterfly mansion with his friends and finds a few hashira, as well as some kakushi enjoying themselves.

It's so unusual to see people relaxing that he doesn't want to ruin the mood, besides, none of them are actually injured, they just wanted to rest for a couple of days.

"Maybe we should go..."

"No!" Zenitsu pouts. "Look at all the pretty girls around! I want to stay!"

"Everyone is invited," Kocho says, startling the boys (even Inosuke) when she appears out of nowhere.

"Thank you, Kocho-san!" Tanjirou bows, grateful, only to immediately look at the boy with the boar head with concern as he starts eyeing the food. "Don't steal anyone's food, Inosuke! Be nice!"

He plans to follow them both to make sure they don't bother anyone, but decides that Zenitsu will be fine on his own since all the girls seem to be interested only in Uzui, Rengoku and Shinazugawa (even though the last one looks as grumpy as always).

"Where are the others?"

"Probably in a mission, Tanjirou," Kocho tells him, making him realize he actually asked that out loud. "But don't worry, they'll have their own opportunity to celebrate."

Tanjirou nods, looking around for a moment and sighing in relief when he spots Inosuke sitting on the floor with a couple of dishes on his lap. At least it looks like he hasn't bothered anyone... yet.

"Look at that, isn't that funny?" Kocho chuckles, staring at the other side of the room. There are a couple of girls smiling adoringly at Rengoku. "They think they have a chance."

"What do you mean?" Tanjirou narrows his eyes, confused.

"Well... Many of the people who work for me would love to marry a hashira, you know?"

Oh... So they're flirting with Rengoku. It doesn't surprise him, he's kind and probably the least intimidating among all the Pillars.

"Poor things... wasting their time."

"But... Uzui-san has three wives. So Rengoku-san can get married too... I mean, I don't see why he wouldn't choose any of them. They're all pretty."

"Well, you see..." Kocho gets closer to him, like she's going to tell him a secret. "He has given his heart away already."

"I see! I hope he is really happy with her!" Tanjirou says, smiling at the insect hashira. He feels a little bit sad suddenly, but he shakes that emotion quickly.

"It's not a girl."

"Oh, well..."

"Tanjirou, my boy!"

He gasps when he's lifted from the ground. His eyes meet fiery ones and a soft smile. His legs wrap themselves around a hard waist.

"Shinobu, why didn't you tell me he was here? Did you try to keep him away from me?" Rengoku says with a grin, although he looks a little bit tense at the other Pillar. One of his hands finds its way to the back of Tanjirou's neck. The grip is gentle but at the same time possessive.

"I was just enjoying his company," she replies with a mischievous smirk. "Also, he's really pretty to look at so I wanted to have him for myself for a while."

Rengoku's eye twitches as he pulls Tanjirou closer to his body. He turns around, taking the young demon slayer with him.

His scent has changed... Tanjirou would say it almost smells like jealousy, but it doesn't make sense.

"Are you hungry, my boy? Let me feed you!"

Tanjirou is blushing to the tip of his ears by the time the flame hashira sits on the floor gracefully, managing to sit him on his lap. The grip on his waist is firm, like he doesn't want to let go of him.

The girls that were talking with Rengoku earlier are looking at them with disappointment.

"There's no need. I can eat by myself, Rengoku-san... You should–"

"Nonsense!" The flame hashira chuckles before rubbing the tip of his nose against Tanjirou's, making the boy giggle. "You must be tired. You just came back from a mission..."

He gives in. It's a little bit awkward at first, but after a couple of bites, he gets used to it. Besides, Rengoku starts asking him about the mission so Tanjirou feels comfortable almost immediately.

"I hope you invite me and my wives to the wedding, Kyojuro," Uzui grins, enjoying how his fellow hashira turns bright red as he sits right next to them.

"What wedding?" Tanjirou asks, intrigued.

Rengoku doesn't say anything, but removes a few crumbs from Tanjirou's lower lip with his thumb.

Uzui seems to find Tanjirou's confusion amusing.

"Listen, pretty boy, they told me you were a genius in battle, so it's time you use those braincells of yours outside the battlefield as well, alright?"

What is that supposed to mean? He wonders... But nods anyway.

"Rengoku-san..."

"Don't worry about it right now, my boy," he cuts him off, kissing him on the cheek. "I'll explain everything to you... later."

Why does Tanjirou have the feeling that he's missing something important?

***

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