A fractured rib is a relatively minor injury, but for demon slayers it was as significant as a broken arm or leg because it hindered the ability to inhale fully, which consequently affected Breathing techniques. Such was the case for Tanjirou, who'd been struck in the side on his most recent mission. Nobody would've assumed he was hurt though from how he chattered energetically with his group as they headed towards the Butterfly Estate.

Upon closing the door they gave a collective sigh of relief at escaping the cold, and they proceeded towards Shinobu's office. The boys were occupied with debating some ridiculous subject, and Nezuko, who was uninterested in the topic, ambled behind them. They passed an ajar door, but because they were distracted with their conversation, only she spotted the person within the room.

Judging by the haori, it looked like Shinobu facing away and gazing out a window, but she'd let her hair down and had selected different butterfly clips. The length and luster of her hair amazed Nezuko, and wanting to compliment her, she went to Shinobu's side to take her hand and—dear God, who was this? This wasn't Shinobu. Nezuko became mortified, withdrew her hand, and lowered her head to apologize, but the stranger smiled so reassuringly that it convinced her to mirror the expression.

To say that Nezuko was charmed would be an understatement; this ethereal beauty completely mesmerized her such that it took her a moment before she noticed the gold buttons on the shirtfront indicating that this person was a Pillar. Perhaps she was a replacement for Kyoujurou or Tengen? This seemed unlikely though because a new Pillar would've surely been announced, and confused by this, Nezuko opened and closed her mouth, trying to form a question. The stranger raised a finger to her own lips in a gesture for silence, and Nezuko imitated her and said, "Hush, hush." This earned a chuckle, and the sound delighted Nezuko, who strove to remember how to ask for someone's name. Her efforts were interrupted though when the Pillar pointed towards the door, and Nezuko looked to it. Zenitsu appeared and said, "There you are. Tanjirou's wondering where you went."

Nezuko made to introduce her new friend, but she'd vanished. Zenitsu saw her searching the room with her eyes, and he too looked around before saying, "Weren't you talking to someone? I thought I heard… well never mind. Ugh, it's freezing in here. We should go." She tilted her head but ultimately complied, and as she raced off ahead of him, he hesitated because the sound of a chuckle that didn't belong to Nezuko still rang clear in his head. As he was about to leave, he gave a troubled glance backwards into the vacant room, and his blood chilled not from the temperature but from a more disquieting impression: he wasn't alone.

His group didn't notice his distress when he sprinted to them though because they were concentrating on eavesdropping. Some unfortunate soul was enduring Shinobu's mom voice, and from within her office she could be heard rebuking, "How can I accurately document how long it takes you to heal and to turn back if you keep skipping visits?" There was no answer, and she continued in a tone that was a degree gentler but just as firm, "I know you hate the lectures, but it's because I'm worried. Your healing is getting faster, and it's taking you longer to turn back each time. The increase is small, but just the fact that it's there means you're inching towards their side. Himejima and I have told you a hundred times, and we'll keep telling you until you listen: don't transform so much."

This too received no response, and her voice shifted from reproachful to teasing: "And anyways, you can't become a demon; you'll break somebody's heart. Oh, you don't know whom? Don't you remember the girl you hit during Final Selection? Kanata. Your apology afterwards must've won her over because when it was just me, Mitsuri, and Tokitou at Oyakata-sama's house recently, Kanata asked me if I'd known you for a long time. I said, 'Yeah I've known him since he was eye-level with me.' She wanted to learn your favorite foods, what you do for fun, things like that. Mitsuri and I understood immediately, but we didn't point it out. Mitsuri then told her, 'You should ask Tokitou too. He and Genya hang out together often.' Big mistake. When Kanata asked him, Tokitou the heartless blockhead said, 'Why? You like him?' Gosh, Mitsuri nearly slapped him."

Tanjirou had heard quite enough. He was generous, yes, but this he refused to share, even if the threat was nothing more than puppy love. Over the sound of Shinobu's laughter, he knocked on the door, and she recomposed herself and called, "Come in!" His spirits soared higher than the clouds when he spotted the subject of Shinobu's torture: Genya! He was flushed with embarrassment and was sitting rigidly with his fists clenched in his lap, but it was Genya nonetheless! He unwound upon seeing Tanjirou, and they stared intently at each other until Genya said to Shinobu, "I'll go now."

"Alright." She then spoke to Tanjirou: "I got your letter! Let's see the damage."

She'd faced away to organize some papers and supplies, and as Tanjirou stood in the doorway, Genya neared him and muttered with feigned hostility, "Move." Tanjirou countered in a low, playful voice, "You move," and he remained in place so that Genya had to squeeze by him. He stifled a smile when Genya brushed against him, and a subtle bump from Tanjirou sent concealed euphoria rippling through them.

Inosuke disrupted this rosy atmosphere by extending his leg to trip Genya, but the latter saw the obstacle, aimed a stomp at it, and missed when the instigator withdrew his leg and sneered. They separated when Shinobu scolded, "Hey!" but they made implicit vows with their glares at each other that they'd finish their business later. She watched Genya until he was out of sight, and then she returned her attention to Tanjirou. The only treatment for a fractured rib was to rest until it healed, and after offering him some painkillers, she went on to examine Inosuke and Zenitsu, neither of whom were markedly injured. Just as they were going to leave, Giyuu appeared in the doorway, and they exclaimed in surprise and greeted him. He was here to have a wound cleaned and stitched, and during this process they surrounded Giyuu to chat with him until he remembered something, whereupon he said to Shinobu, "Did Shinazugawa stop by? His job was tougher than mine, so he's probably hurt."

"He didn't, so he's likely ok."

"We'd better make sure. Let's call him."

"Oh dear, here we go again." She retrieved a telephone, asked the operator to connect her to Sanemi, and then handed the phone to Giyuu. Their proximity allowed them to hear Sanemi's voice leaking from the earpiece, and it sounded rough and groggy like he'd been roused from sleep: "What's up, Kochou?"

Giyuu's only response was to lightly breathe over the mouthpiece, and Shinobu faced away to suppress her laughter. This wasn't the first or even the second time that the former had done this, so Sanemi recognized what was happening. He wasn't thrilled that he'd been awoken for this, and he unleashed a barrage of vitriol. The Kamaboko Squad learned some new words that day, many of which appalled them, but Giyuu endured these insults silently and impassively. When the onslaught waned, he gave a mild smile and said, "I'm glad you're well, Shinazugawa," and this amused everyone except Sanemi, who was enraged anew. He readied a second round of attack: "Why you—!"

He was interrupted though by a third voice coming through the phone, a feminine one softly reproving, "Sanemi." Giyuu didn't hear this because he'd turned away to sneeze, and everyone else was occupied with smothering their snorts and giggles. An unrivaled set of ears in the room detected it though, and Zenitsu became perplexed because nobody here normally addressed the Pillar by his first name. He thought that maybe Sanemi had female company over, but something about that theory seemed off. He soon understood why: that was the voice that'd been laughing with Nezuko earlier, and it was impossible for a person to travel from here to there in such a brief amount of time. This realization made him tremble so violently that he couldn't speak, but nobody else was disturbed except for Sanemi, who must've also heard the voice because his fire had been snuffed. He grumbled, "Eat shit," and then hung up, but his tone had sounded more unsettled than irate.

The room shook with laughter as Giyuu returned the phone, and he stood, thanked Shinobu, and bid everyone farewell. Zenitsu remained fearful though, and seeing this, Shinobu misunderstood and said, "Shinazugawa won't hurt you. He wasn't even aware that you all are here. You know what'll make things better though? Dinner!" She sent them to their room and stated that their food would be arriving shortly, and as they got settled Tanjirou said, "I'll be right back. I'm gonna go find Genya."

"Don't bring him in here!" Inosuke shouted, but Tanjirou just chided, "Don't be mean, Inosuke," as he left for his search. Shinobu had placed them in an empty wing, and as Tanjirou passed a darkened room, an unseen force grabbed him and dragged him in.

He yelled and squirmed as something coiled around him, but then a beloved voice laughed, "Shh, you're so loud." The light turned on, and Tanjirou was overjoyed such that he stood silently for several seconds pressed against Genya's chest like he could scarcely believe this wasn't a dream. At length Genya leaned away so that they could look at each other, and the sight of that darling, golden face turned upwards to him compelled him to cup it in his hands and to plant kisses upon it. Tanjirou relished and returned this by pulling Genya down to him, and then he asked, "Why'd Shinobu put you all alone in here?"

"I've work in the middle of the night. I didn't wanna wake people when I'm leaving and returning. Speaking of, you finished your job early. I didn't expect to see you so soon."

"But you're happy to see me, right?"

"Don't ask questions you know the answer to."

Tanjirou beamed, nuzzled against him, and crooned, "I missed you. I'm always counting down the days until we're together again." In a world rife with insincerity and cynicism, Tanjirou's honesty and openheartedness was a ray of light, and it brought Genya unfathomable joy that this radiance was directed at him. He couldn't express this without feeling silly though, so he instead hid his face in the crook of Tanjirou's neck and murmured, "Well I heard you'll be out for a while, so we'll have plenty of time. What happened?"

"Come eat with us. I'll tell you over dinner."

When Tanjirou returned with Genya, Zenitsu was describing to Inosuke what he'd heard on the phone, but Inosuke was instead focused on Aoi handing them their food. He began eating immediately, and Zenitsu whined, "You're not listening! Shinazugawa heard it too! I could tell by his voice!" Only when Aoi exited the room did another slayer, who was packing a suitcase, speak up: "It's because Kochou's a witch."

Tanjirou frowned. "That's rude to say."

She shrugged. "It's the truth. You've never wondered why so many weird things happen around here? Where she gets all her stories from?"

"Don't disrespect her when she treats us for free."

"I'm not dissing her. All I'm saying is she of all people is the one you shouldn't anger." The slayer closed her suitcase and left, and when her footsteps could no longer be heard, Genya remarked, "Wrong Kochou. It's not Shinobu."

"Whom is it then, Genya-kun?" Shinobu's chirp from the doorway startled them, and she laughed, "I heard my name. What's the gossip now?"

Inosuke answered, "Somebody said you're a witch. What's a witch?"

This tickled her. "It's not me… or is it? Genya's right though. That rumor started with my mom and then trickled down to me and my late sister, Kanae, but the credit is rightfully Kanae's." She called for Kanao, requested that she retrieve their sister's belongings, and began her tale: "Kanae was too good for this miserable, hideous world. She was loving, brilliant, strong, but above all she was terrifying because she'd inherited our mom's knowledge. Of course Kanae didn't abuse this knowledge, but there was an instance where she used it maliciously.

"She'd caught the eye of a particularly persistent fellow, but she refused him because she already had someone. Unfortunately one of her shortcomings was that she was too polite, so he didn't take her rejection seriously. He kept pursuing her until one day, I walked in on him putting his hands on her. He stopped and left because of me, but I still wanted to tell on him. She wouldn't let me though. She said she'd handle it herself, and then she stunned me by inviting him over later.

"I don't know what all happened between them, but he was ecstatic when he left. He boasted about how she was gonna leave her man for him, but how odd… he couldn't remember her boyfriend's name. And he kept forgetting other things too, little things initially, like the name of an animal or food or how to get somewhere. But then it started becoming bigger things, like how to read and write or whom his family and friends were. He reasoned that this was fine because what mattered was that he had Kanae in his mind, and yet he continued forgetting more and more. He forgot how to use Breaths, how to react to hunger or thirst, how to speak, but one word remained clear: Kanae. It was like she'd said, 'Alright, if you want me so badly, then I'll sign my name over your brain until it's all you know.' It was over when he forgot the oldest and most important emotion."

Tanjirou guessed, "Love?"

"Fear. A lack of love is agonizing, but a lack of fear is lethal. Before there were civilizations, languages, even humans, fear already existed. It's essential for survival. Without it you endanger yourself, so it wasn't shocking when they pronounced his death. He died not knowing who he was, where he was, or what was happening. You wouldn't believe what they discovered during his autopsy."

The winter gale outside had stopped its wailing like it too wanted to hear, and unable to bear the silence, Zenitsu cried, "What?!"

"Hair. Long strands of it tangled around his organs and bones. I peeked in the trash after they'd finished, and the strands were the same length as Kanae's."

The Kamaboko Squad furrowed their brows as they digested this, but Genya was unaffected because he'd heard this story at least a dozen times. Tanjirou asked, "Did she curse anyone else?"

"Not to that extent. Curses weren't really her or my mom's thing to begin with. This is just speculation, but I think their greatest power was they could tell when someone was marked for death. I'm almost certain that both my mom and Kanae foresaw their own ends because when they died, everything was in order: finances, life insurance, detailed instructions on how to do what, everything."

"How'd they know when they were gonna die?"

"I don't know. My mom passed before I could ask her, and whenever I questioned Kanae, she'd act like she didn't know what I was talking about." She paused because Kanao had entered with a box, and the latter handed the container over and then left. "This is the only picture I have of her after our parents died," and Shinobu took from the box a photo featuring all the Pillars.

Tanjirou gasped, "Rengoku's in it!" but the Flame and Flower Pillars' smiling images had been lightly marred by white dots while the other Pillars were unblemished. "What are these specks?"

"It's where I cleaned mold off. The cleaning solution prevents further growth, but I can't restore where the mold ate the ink."

They examined the photo nostalgically until Nezuko made some agitated noises and pointed at Kanae. She wanted to say, "I met her earlier!" but Tanjirou misinterpreted and said, "She's pretty, yeah? It's a shame about the damage, but she's still visible through it."

Inosuke peered into the box. "What's that?"

"Kanae's camera. She enjoyed photography." Shinobu took out some albums containing a multitude of scenery and floral shots interspersed with the occasional person. They stopped at a photo of Gyoumei flanked by three children hugging bouquets: Kanao and Shinobu on the left, and on the right was Genya peeking out from behind Gyoumei's arm. Tanjirou exclaimed, "Aw, look how tiny you were! Do you remember how at Final Selection, you were shorter than me?"

Shinobu laughed, "Kanae was fond of him. He was a snappy, little thing, but damn he could make the flowers grow." She sighed wistfully, "That was how things were: Genya would grow the flowers, and Kanao and I would arrange them for Kanae to photograph. Those days felt endless. If only we knew that our endless days were numbered."

Genya's gaze fell to the sleeve of her haori, and she laid her hand over his and rubbed absently at a scar as they both mentally slipped backwards in time. They were returned to the present by Inosuke inquiring, "Are there other pictures of Aniki?"

"Only one. This was when he was mentoring Mitsuri." She produced a photo with Kyoujurou, Senjurou, and Mitsuri, but once again, Kyoujurou was partially obscured by spots while the other two were untouched. Tanjirou remarked, "The mold only grows on the pictures with people."

"Yeah that's why Kanae favored flowers. She said the details of people attracted the mold. Or something like that."

Zenitsu had been quiet throughout all this as he contemplated everything. "You said she had a boyfriend. Who?"

"Good question! Ask Genya. He knows," and she pinched said person's cheek as he reddened. This was all the information Zenitsu needed, and he started shaking and stammering, "On the phone—he and I—we heard—" but his chattering teeth impeded his coherence.

Nezuko reached around him for the box, but Tanjirou stopped her hand and said, "No, Nezuko. Don't just grab her things." Shinobu pushed it towards them though and reassured, "It's fine! Kanae would want you to look. Be careful though because she might still be here. She sees you. She watches you. She judges you. And now she knows that you know..." The Kamaboko Squad sat motionless with wide eyes until Inosuke felt something skim across his back. He jumped and shuddered so severely that his mask became crooked, and Genya revealed himself as the culprit by doubling over with laughter. The victim raised a fist, but a look from Shinobu made him shrink back.

Nezuko, who was still intrigued by the container's contents, pointed at it and looked to Shinobu for permission, and the latter said, "I meant it when I said Kanae would want you to look, but be very gentle. I'll come back for it in the morning." She then said to the troublemakers, "You two need an activity other than tormenting each other. Here," and she gave them a game that required teamwork to complete.

Shinobu left, and Nezuko eagerly took a book from the box and nestled against her brother as she flipped through it until she reached a page that she excitedly held out to him. "You want me to read it? It says, 'At midnight on a night with a full moon, walk backwards down a flight of stairs with a mirror in one hand and a candle in the other. Your future spouse will appear in the mirror.' That's... horrifying." She didn't think so though, and she pointed out a window and then to a clock to indicate the conditions were right. He remained unconvinced. "You shouldn't make marriage a goal. What would be a better goal is trying to find someone whom you wanna explore and share life with, regardless of if you marry them."

She shook her head and pressed her finger against him. "Oh, you want me to do this? I'll pass." Her tugging at his hand wouldn't move him, so she squared her shoulders and whispered, "Genya."

Tanjirou covered his face and mumbled, "Nezuko, stop," and she burst into laughter and leaned against him until he shook his head and stood. "If I see something awful, if I get possessed, then it's your fault. Who's gonna return you to being human then, huh?" She disregarded the warning and cheerfully bounced after him as they went into the hallway and headed for the stairs.

Meanwhile Genya and Inosuke were situated at the other end of the room, and they'd figured out how to make even a cooperative game into a competition. They had a score sheet going, and the side marked with a watermelon slice was trouncing the side marked with a tempura shrimp. Inosuke accused, "You're cheating." Genya was indeed deliberately misreading the instructions to shift the odds in his favor, but he answered, "I'm not. You just suck."

"Then why didn't I get a point for doing that just now when you got one for doing the same thing earlier?"

"Because that's what the rules say."

"Bullshit." Inosuke refused to surrender though, so he huffed, "What's next?"

"It says to take the score sheet and fold it in half."

This seemed nonsensical to Inosuke, but he did so. "Ok, now what?"

"Now fold it in half three more times—"

"What the hell...?"

"—and shove it up your ass."

That was the last straw for Inosuke. He hurled the paper at his opponent and pounced on him, and now that nobody was supervising them, Genya readily retaliated. Zenitsu had been lying in bed because he wanted no part in Genya and Inosuke's deranged antics or the Kamado siblings' frightening game, but not even here was there peace. He pleaded, "Guys, stop," but his request went ignored because he had neither Shinobu's authority nor Tanjirou's confidence. The brawl was moving dangerously near, and he hastened away to Tanjirou for safety.

He found Nezuko standing at the bottom of the stairs while her brother was slowly descending them. At the sound of footsteps, Tanjirou said over his shoulder, "Zenitsu? I thought you were asleep," and then he glimpsed something terrible in the mirror: a pale, slender figure with long, disheveled hair. What a night; spooky stories, scrying, and now a ghost in plain sight. This was too much for Tanjirou. He screamed, flung the mirror and candle, and staggered, and unable to regain his balance, he tumbled down the stairs as Zenitsu and Nezuko shrieked. Behind them the specter contributed with a squeak.

This ghost was none other than Kanao returning to her room after washing her hair. She'd paused to observe this curious spectacle unfolding on the stairway, and it'd resulted in Tanjirou catching her reflection in the mirror he was holding. She was unaware though that she'd been perceived as a phantom, and she thought guiltily that his screaming was because he'd caught her watching. He was now lying on the floor as Zenitsu and Nezuko tended to him, and when Tanjirou recognized the "ghost," he alternated laughing and wincing as he clutched his ribs. Genya and Inosuke had ceased their fight to run to the commotion, and after the misunderstanding was cleared so that Kanao was assured they weren't angry with her, Tanjirou said, "I think it's time for bed."

It was well past midnight when they'd settled down, and only the Kamado siblings remained awake: Nezuko because she was entranced by Kanae's book, and Tanjirou because he was waiting for Zenitsu and Inosuke to fall asleep. Finally he sat up and whispered, "Nezuko, I'll be four doors to the left." She nodded, and he crept from his bed, down the hall, and to one of the best places on Earth: within Genya's embrace. How blissful to shed responsibilities and woes, to exchange everything wrong with their lives for the comfort of being wrapped around each other. The wind could howl, the world could wither, and the corpses could accumulate, but that didn't matter because all was well in their tiny kingdom of blankets and murmurs. The two occupants of this kingdom had seen each other at their worst, at their ugliest and most graceless, and rather than being repulsed, it'd cultivated in them something sought by humans everywhere: complete trust, unflinching vulnerability. Regardless Genya made his offer hesitantly: "There's a New Year market in town. They'll be open for three more days. It's massive, takes up a whole building, and there are food stalls in tents outside. I took Shinobu and the other butterfly girls yesterday, and they liked it to where they're trying to go again. Your group would probably like it too. We could go tomorrow after I return from work."

He watched for Tanjirou's approval and was rewarded with a telltale brightening of his features along with a request: "I want it to be just us."

Genya snorted at this rare display of selfishness, but it inwardly pleased him. "Fine, just us tomorrow, and then we'll take everyone else the day after. Will you be ok with your injury?"

"It only hurts when I twist around or if I inhale deeply." Tanjirou raised his shirt to survey the bruise, which the incident on the stairs had exacerbated, and then he said coyly, "Kiss it better?"

"Every time we see each other, you get a little worse."

Tanjirou laughed, "And whose fault is that? Who's the one who spoils me?" and then he smiled at the press of lips against his ribs, at the tacit promise sealed into his skin: you're mine, and I'm yours, forever, eternally, evermore. Forever... what a bold statement to make in the face of human mortality, and yet they both dared to wish for it. Well why shouldn't they? Sure, life could be dark and cruel, but it'd stay mostly sweet, right? Because they'd always have each other, right...? Tanjirou shivered, partially from the cold, partially from something colder, but his doubts evaporated as Genya's kisses ascended his body to reach his mouth.

In the obsidian paradise of night, when the gasps and sighs had dwindled to weary whispers, Genya was drowsy to where he'd closed his eyes, and he blindly draped an arm over Tanjirou, who hissed, "Ow!" The former moved away from the bruise and said, "Sorry. What were you even doing on the stairs?"

"It was a game Nezuko read about in one of Kanae's books. Could she really predict deaths?"

"I don't doubt it. Kanae was something else. She was scary, but everyone admired her. She and Rengoku shared that feature: they were incredibly charismatic and selfless. It's unbelievable that they're both gone. The good ones always go first." Genya was mumbling from exhaustion, but Tanjirou, who was always energized by their reunions, had become talkative. The latter said pensively, "Shinobu said Kanae anticipated her own end. I'm not sure I'd wanna know that about myself. I guess it's practical to know, like how Kanae organized all her stuff before leaving, but I think if I knew, then I'd obsess over it, and that'd ruin my remaining time alive. What about you? Would you wanna know?"

"I don't know, Tanjirou. We'll talk about it tomorrow, but let me sleep now because I've work in two hours." He gave a final, tired caress over Tanjirou's arm, and then he was out. Tanjirou, however, had become wakeful with elation. Tomorrow! Such a gorgeous word! Tomorrow they'd have fun at the market, they'd savor each other's company, and they'd talk until they were happily breathless! He snuggled against Genya and closed his eyes, but the dazzling visions of tomorrow and all the wonderful days that'd follow it kept him conscious.

Perhaps reading or doing something would help, so he returned to his room and saw that Nezuko had fallen asleep with Kanae's book. He removed it from her to place in its box, whereupon he spotted the photo album Shinobu had presented earlier. He took this and returned to Genya's room, where he sat on the bed browsing through gray images of a distant, unfamiliar past. Upon rediscovering the photo of Gyoumei with three children, he glanced to Genya's sleeping form and marveled at the metamorphosis. Who would've thought that one grumpy runt could blossom into someone so precious and lovable? If Genya could change so, then this surely meant their relationship would also grow into beautiful unknowns and infinites, and as these tender hopes for the future surged through Tanjirou, he raised the photograph to his face to view it more thoroughly. Faintly, one minuscule dot each on Gyoumei, Shinobu, and Genya, mold had started to bloom.