The Butterfly Estate was fairly sizeable, capable of housing numerous injured Demon Slayers at any point in time, but at a full sprint, Inosuke was able to cover it rather quickly. Running from room to room, his loud voice continued to ring out through the entire mansion, those pounding footsteps alerting Aoi as he neared. When he finally found her, Inosuke skidded to a halt, proclaiming the thoughts he had put together in his head without lowering his volume. "AOI! DON'T RUN FROM OPPAI! BE PROUD OF OPPAI BECAUSE OPPAI IS LARGE BREASTS! OPPAI IS A FINE WOMAN! INOSUKE NOTICES HOW MUCH OPPAI YOU HAVE GROWN! EAT FOOD AND KEEP GROWING, AND INOSUKE CAN GO WITH YOU TO HOT SPRING TO COMPARE OPPAI LIKE GRANDMAS!" His loud words continued to reverberate even after he finished, a huge grin on his face as he thrust the tray full of food towards the flustered girl. "Eat!"
Aoi had just a little bit of time to gather up some more writing materials before contemplating whether she ought to return to her room and freshen up a bit, or go and eat herself. Rude as Naho had been, she still trusted the young girls to make sure that Inosuke ate and rested. She just didn't expect that Inosuke would come after her still yelling about the new word that he had learned and trying to take care of reassuring her in his own boisterous, odd way. She heard him before he had finally found her in the kitchens, picking up after the meal that Kiyo had been preparing. As his voice blasted over her, pinning the delicate blue butterfly wings in her hair back with the force, Aoi tried to keep up with his raving, blinking in confusion when he stopped and gave him the unfinished portions of the food he had been brought.
Despite her flustered reactions earlier, what he had been taught was so random and muddled that she couldn't do much more than stare as her mind worked to make sense of it all. And when it did, as much as she could understand at least, she couldn't help but to burst out laughing.
"Ah…Ahahahaha!" She doubled over, tears springing to the corners of her eyes as she gasped for breath and wiped them away. She felt rather foolish for getting embarrassed at all, Inosuke's confusion and purity more obvious than ever. "O-okay, I'll eat," she managed to say once the fit of laughter managed to subside a bit, taking the tray from him to move it to the table. "Are you sure you should be up and walking around though?" Of course, she didn't think so, but he knew his own abilities.
Inosuke looked expectantly at Aoi, waiting for her response. In his mind, she'd naturally just agree and start eating, his simplistic logic not accounting for the sheer absurdity of what he had just hollered in her face. He hadn't expected laughter to bubble up from her so suddenly nor quite that loudly, the twin-tailed girl doubling over as couldn't control herself. The smile remained on his face even as he looked slightly bewildered; after all, food was serious business. But that much mirth was infectious, and soon he was chortling alongside her, though he wasn't quite at the point of crying like she was. "Good! Eat!" he responded with monosyllabic enthusiasm as she took the tray from him, following her over to the table where she could enjoy the meal he'd brought her.
"Of course! Inosuke belongs on his feet when he's awake, not in a bed!" was his boisterous response, swinging his arms even as he bent his knees, squatting down low to show off. The pain returned the instant he reached the bottom of the squat, shooting through his body and making his knees tremble slightly, that slight pause giving him away even though he shot back up a second later and acted as if nothing was wrong. "See! Perfect health!" he demonstrated a second time, visibly wincing this time but still trying to seem like he was at one hundred percent. He was smart enough not to try that a third time, but his energy remained persistent, "Such perfect health! Perfect enough to go to hot spring and compare oppai like grandmas." It never crossed his mind that what he'd said before was strange, so naturally, he said it again.
After the exertion of those squats and the return of the ache within his body, Inosuke pulled out a chair and took a seat beside Aoi, already feeling her scrutinizing look. "Perfect health! Inosuke just decided to sit down! Don't worry! Just be proud and become a fine woman!"
She wasn't entirely convinced that he even understood why or how he had made her laugh so hard, but he wasn't offended. She immediately regretted asking after his bed rest when it prompted him to have to demonstrate squats. She caught enough subtlety in his expression to know that it hurt a fair bit even the first time, much more the successive ones after. It was almost as if he were trying to prove to himself more than her that he was well enough. She sighed softly, holding back anymore remarks unless he try it again, and grunting as he brought up the hot springs and older ladies once more. If she ignored it completely then he might even get in trouble later on with people who didn't know what he was talking about.
"When your wounds close up, I think I will have you bathe in the springs to help heal the deeper straining in your muscles and joints." Aoi told him, checking up on the bandages to be certain he wasn't already ripping up stitches and skin with all his activity and running around. "But you won't be able to go with me, Kiyo, Naho, or the other grandmas. When I go it's only with other girls and women. And for you it'd be with other men, like Tanjiro and Zenitsu. Whatever you boys want to compare is entirely your own business..." She coughed, blushing a bit into her fist as she tried to focus on eating a bit of breakfast. It was ironic that she'd have someone like Inosuke encouraging her to have more confidence in her body.
That unerring pale green gaze remained fixed on Aoi as she explained that he couldn't join her in the hot spring, the boorish warrior grinding his teeth as some of what she said didn't sit well with him. He knew that he was only supposed to normally take baths by himself or with the others, and that had never been a problem for him, but Inosuke was fixated on helping Aoi and having some issue letting it go. If he were younger, he might have barreled ahead and continued to insist, but the tone of her voice and the light in her eyes were clear enough that even Inosuke could register that she was serious. "Fine! But don't run or hide from the grandmas and Naho and Kiyo or anybody else! Show them you're proud of your oppai! That you're the Oppai Boss!" combining the new word with one of his long-time favorites to give her an unusual new title. His large, calloused hands clapped on her shoulders, giving those slender muscles a squeeze as he nodded emphatically as if saying the matter were settled.
Unable to help himself, Inosuke plucked several slices of pear from the tray and chomping away on them. His mouth opened as if to say something, but remembering what Aoi had told him earlier, he instead refrained from speaking for the moment, chewing on his food and swallowing it before proceeding to speak his mind. "You're a fine woman. You always fix me when I hurt, and you teach me how to read and write. You don't fight like Inosuke does, but you are strong too. Just different strong." Grabbing at another piece of pear, he paused before popping it into his mouth, instead holding it out towards her, "Boss Inosuke respects Oppai Boss Aoi."
Spared from having to go into further detail about why men and women bathed separately, unless they were a couple perhaps, Aoi smiled sheepishly and nodded to at least assure him that she'd try to have a little more confidence the next time she was in the nude with a group of people. She still felt a bit silly at how he had managed to normalize an otherwise unspoken asset of her development. For all his yelling and brashness, he had taken her embarrassment to heart and was doing his best to empathize and give her confidence. He was even listening to what she had tried to teach him about eating through it all.
As he thanked her for her care in his own way, Aoi smiled warmly and nodded, accepting the offered pear by leaning over and gingerly taking a bite from his fingers to let him feed her. It felt like he was trying to take care of her. "That's very kind of you to say, Boss Inosuke. Don't worry about me. I feel much better now." She was certain that she'd only hurt herself if she ever tried to seriously swing a sword again, and had invested herself in all the skills that had helped him and others survive to that day. But no matter how overshadowed it was to be working behind the scenes, his acknowledgement was all she needed. Not that she had any doubt of the importance of medicine. "Um… Just don't call me Oppai Boss when there's other people around though, okay? Um… in fact, it might be better for you to not use the word oppai at all." She made a mental note to give Naho a firm talking to later about the slang and how she ought to have known better. Maybe they had all just gotten too comfortable with one another.
"Do you want anything else to eat while we're in the kitchen? I can make you some of your favorites if you're still hungry." She offered as she finished up. "I'll walk you back to your bed when you're satisfied."
Inosuke beamed triumphantly as he was thanked, his chest puffing up as Aoi acknowledged him as the boss. It seemed that he had gotten through to the young woman, and she had recognized just how awesome he was. Tanjiro wasn't the only person who could make people feel better with words! Soon, Inosuke would beat him at that as well, and then he'd say the best words to make him feel good about losing. He nodded along with her strong suggestion that he refrain from calling her Oppai Boss in public, though he found his own reason for agreement.
"Yes, Inosuke doesn't need to say it. Aoi will show people she is Oppai Boss, so I don't have to." Whether his advice was metaphorical or literally to assert her dominance by showing off the might of her growing bosom was for her to determine. As Inosuke was one to go around without a shirt the large majority of the time, he certainly would approve of the literal choice too.
At the mention of more food, Inosuke's demeanor shifted entirely, the warm glow of pride vanishing in an instant and replaced with an almost inscrutable stare. Inscrutable until he began to visibly drool, nodding eagerly without saying a word. Boss Inosuke outranked Oppai Boss in his internal hierarchy, so naturally it was a sign of good initiative by his subordinate to offer to prepare him more food. Kiyo's cooking had been wonderful and bountiful, but even on his least voracious days, he was a black hole that food disappeared into. With his body on the mend, he craved even more.
"Oppai Boss understands so well..." he said, voice trembling with pride.
Inosuke was a simple boy and simple things made him happy. His reasoning was likewise easy to understand and was surprisingly empowering. She never would have suspected or thought that his words would be so effective, but she was rather thankful for it in the end. So long as the entire notion of 'Oppai Boss' remained between them, she wouldn't have to put up a front and be embarrassed over it anymore either. Obviously she wasn't about to go topless everywhere to prove to anyone that she was a growing girl. But she appreciated his sentiment. It took a moment for Aoi to realize that he was indeed enthusiastic about getting to eat more food, picking up a nearby napkin to wipe at his drool. "Ah... I thought I did understand you pretty well, for the most part..." Aoi murmured at his odd joy. She wondered if she even ought to feel a little proud that she had made it to boss level on some aspect with him in his world.
Letting him wait and watch, Aoi made him what she had often observed him eating and reaching for most often when presented with a variety of foods and with other people. Shrimp and kobocha squash tempura were battered and fried to a golden crispy perfection in short order. A pot of rich genmai tea was also boiled and poured for the two to share. For dessert she got out red bean dorayaki that Kiyo had bought from the marketplace just the other day, happy to sneak and share some of them with him as a treat.
Inosuke was indeed a simple one with simple needs and wants, and food was often near the top of that short list. He remained seated at first as Aoi began to cook for him, but as the oil bubbled and crackled in the pan, the savory scent of frying tempura filling in the kitchen, he ended up hovering around the young woman, peering at her handiwork while continuing to drool a little. Every now and again he'd peer over her shoulder or lean around her side, watching her cooking from various angles. The breakfast that Kiyo had prepared was quite tasty, but Aoi was frying up some of his absolute favorites for him. Whenever she had to move to grab something, Inosuke made sure not to get in her way, continuing to hover about eagerly, though it took some manner of self-control to not just snatch up each piece of tempura as they were finished, allowing Aoi to finish this second meal so they could share it together.
When the meal finally came together, Inosuke hurriedly returned to his seat, sitting at attention while his nostrils flared excitedly. It all smelled so delicious, and once the tempura and dorayaki were laid before him, he clapped his hands together and loudly called out, "Itadakimasu!" before starting to wolf down the tempura. "Mmmmmmmmm~ delicious! Delicious!" he managed between shoveling more tempura into his mouth, at least partially succeeding in chewing with his mouth closed most of the time. The way he ate, it was almost like he hadn't finished a meal just recently, that tempura seeming to disappear into a second stomach. By the time he was finished though, his body had grown quite heavy. The weight of all that food was also making him drowsy, so as Aoi started to shepherd him back towards the infirmary, Inosuke didn't put up a fight.
By the time he had finished eating his second breakfast, or rather lunch, she had fed him so well that his belly was actually full and slightly rotund. Aoi insisted on seeing him back to the infirmary wing, and that they go slowly together with her hanging on to his arm. She didn't doubt that he'd resist and carry himself or pull ahead, but by the time they were back at the other end of the estate he felt a little bit heavier as the activity and food all caught up with him. The room and all the beds had been cleaned and reset ever since the other helpers had left, and Aoi turned down and helped Inosuke into his usual place before tucking him into it. She also let his hair down so that it'd be more comfortable as she fluffed his pillows to lay him back.
Surprisingly enough, Inosuke didn't simply charge ahead through the halls like Aoi may have expected. Whether it was due to his lingering injuries, his full belly, or overexerting himself by dashing about the estate earlier, he moved along at a steady pace, never once trying to pull away from Aoi's grasp on his arm. A pleasant, soothing warmth flowed from her hands and arm into his body, the softness of her skin causing the temperature of his body to rise. Every now and again, his arm brushed against the side of her breast the way she held onto him. Normally, such things were of no consequence to Inosuke, but he took greater notice of it now. He took notice of her far more than he did most others in fact. There was some air about her that made him feel... tingly and light. It was similar to the time he'd made a pinky promise with Shinobu, the former mistress of the Butterfly Estate, but it wasn't precisely the same either.
"Have a good nap, Inosuke. I'll see you when you wake up. And… thanks for supporting my oppai." She added, grinning before pressing her lips to his forehead in appreciation as she watched his eyes grow heavy.
Inosuke couldn't figure out what he was feeling, his large green eyes watching the young woman silently as she made his bed and tucked him into it. Every action she took was for his care and comfort, pampering and doting on him, and he was glad for it since that meant she lingered there longer. The tender touch of her lips to his forehead caused his face to redden considerably, but he did manage to stammer out, "T-thank you for... feeding Inosuke and taking good care of him." Even flushed as he was, the bed was so comfortable and the blankets so warm, so it was only a matter of time before he drifted off under her watchful gaze, falling into a deep sleep and snoring up a storm.