walk steady on this cruel world's path

By: Aviantei

Part Fifty-One:

"And We Walked Together, No Matter the Sky"

"Hey, Aoi-chan, are they gonna be okay to go out tomorrow?"

"That's what I was trying to check before a certain someone started making a fool of himself," Aoi said. Whenever Zenitsu at least looked ashamed of his blatant proclamations of affection for me, Aoi scoffed. Over the past month, such things had become routine. Knowing the drill by now, I helped pull the blankets away and let her get to work. Zenitsu was far more nervous about the process than I was, if his grip on my hand was any indication, so I just patted his head as a distraction until Aoi was done. "Alright, congratulations. Looks like this has managed to heal without any problems." I sighed in relief, and Zenitsu let out a cheer. Aoi gave him a stern look. "You two can go out tomorrow, but you need to be back by the nightfall. And you," she said, jabbing Zenitsu in the chest, "look out for them. Rairi-san, we can start on fitting you for your prosthetic and setting up your full rehabilitation when you get back."

I nodded; that had been what we'd agreed upon in advance anyways. "Thanks again, Aoi-chan. We'll be sure to be careful."

"As long as you understand that." Even with her serious tone, a little bit of the sternness slipped out of her expression. "I need to get back to work, so I'll check back in with you later. Let the girls know if you need anything." And with that, she was off again, as busy as ever. I'd need to give her something as a sign of gratitude when I had the chance.

"Thank goodness," Zenitsu muttered, and I let out a questioning hum, though it was easy to guess what he was talking about since his gaze was still directed towards my leg. "I was just worried for you. Even with Total Concentration, it took you a while to heal. I just don't like seeing it when you're hurt…"

He bit his lip like he was worried that he'd said too much. I hesitated a bit, then leaned forward to press a kiss against his forehead, which made him blush and grin all at once. "Thank you for caring for me," I said, my voice coming out softer than I intended. "I'll be counting on you tomorrow, okay?"

"Right! Leave it to me!"

Being late January, the outside air was pretty cold, despite all the kimono layers I'd bundled up in. In comparison to the fancy material of the Corps uniform, nothing was anywhere near as flexible in terms of temperature regulation, but I didn't have to wear that anymore—no one did, our time as soldiers in battle done. As a consequence, Zenitsu and I were still a bit chilly, but he wasn't about to pass up an opportunity to cuddle up to my side, and, well, I wasn't going to say no, either.

The one challenge to that situation was that I didn't have a prosthetic yet, so I was still working with a crutch. I'd at least learned more about maneuvering with the thing, and I knew I'd be using those skills for quite some time, too. Even after I got a full prosthetic (that I had to keep reminding myself wouldn't be anywhere close to the level of tech I'd once known), there would be days whenever I didn't want to bother or times when it was just easier to use the crutch. So it had gained a permanent place in my inventory throughout the future, but there were worse fates than that.

Did death count as one of them?

Since I was now well enough to do so, Zenitsu had brought me back to Headquarters (or maybe former Headquarters was more appropriate, seeing as the Demon Slayer Corps had disbanded?) and the graveyard there. While some Slayers had people back home to mourn them, even more had no one. The Corps graveyard held all those others, and Kiriya had insisted that every single Slayer we lost in the final battle got their recognition, just like the rest that had come before. It had taken time and resources, but Kiriya had said it was the least the Ubuyashiki family could do for them all. Which was a great sentiment and all, but I still wished that they didn't have to deal with any of that stuff.

Well, I could make good on my promise to help them be a kid later. Right now, Zenitsu and I had our own respects to pay.

While in life the Hashira were all but revered, someone back in the day had decided that there wouldn't be any pomp and circumstance for them in death—a Corps tradition I didn't have any reason to nitpick for once. As such, the two new grave markers that Zenitsu and I stopped by weren't all that distinguishable from the rest, save for the extra flowers put out nearby. Since piggybacking me to Headquarters hadn't been conducive to carrying anything all that extensive, our own offerings were meager in comparison, but it was the thought that mattered most. We stopped by Kochō's grave first, giving a quick prayer and thanks for her help before moving on to the next marker, with two sets of kanji marked in the stone.

Iguro Obanai and Iguro Mitsuri.

For the past month, I'd known about it, about the wins and the losses in that fight. Though they were an eclectic group, the Hashira were well loved, so there had been plenty of mourning, though the fact that we'd lost three of them still felt like some distant sensation that hadn't caught up to me yet, like Mitsuri just hadn't come and visited me because she was busy, as if she'd come bustling into the room when I least expected it with snacks and a smile, congratulating me on my engagement.

I let my fingers graze over the kanji for their names, the stone cold to the touch. My sleeve shifted, the weight around my forearm moving about until the tip of a white nose poked out. Kaburamaru, Iguro's snake that was now in my care, looked to me, as if the weather was my fault.

"Sorry it's cold," I told them. "We'll be sure to come back when it's warm next time, alright?" Kaburamaru's tongue flicked out once as if in answer, and then they were slithering back up my sleeve and away from the chill in the air. I kept my hand on the memorial stone anyways, as if that would let me process it, would let me send my feelings onward. "Mitsuri-san, Iguro-san…"

I'm sorry that what I shared wasn't enough.

I'm sorry that you still ended up dying.

I'm sorry that I didn't get the chance to say goodbye in person.

I—

"I hope you're both happy together," I whispered, my tears making my cold cheeks all the colder. "I made sure you two were side by side here, so you can rest easy. We'll see each other again, okay?" If they were reborn together, just like in Canon, then we could still cross paths, even if it was in another life. That said, the loss still hurt, too. We stood there for a good long while, and it was more the ache in my arm from leaning on my crutch that got us to move before anything else. Zenitsu and I made our way through the other new graves, stopping anytime we recognized a name. This person had been on a mission with Zenitsu, that one had been one of the mentors I'd assigned to my program, and so on. We offered prayers where we could, meandering towards the entrance so we'd be able to make it back to Butterfly Manor in time for Aoi's curfew.

Despite the cold, plenty of others were out and about besides us. Day by day, the remnants of the Demon Slayer Corps were recovering, and more people were now capable of paying their respects, the same as me. The graveyard would be busy still for some time to come, and, if Kiriya followed their father's practice, there would always be someone to visit here. All these people would be remembered, which was a nice sentiment. Even if they didn't have anyone outside of the Corps, no one would be forgotten—it didn't matter if they were a Hashira or a hero or anything else.

"Oh, Michi-san," I said whenever we crossed paths. I didn't have any intention of holding him up if he wanted to be alone, but Michi slowed down once he was close by. I'd just come to a stop myself before Zenitsu was supporting me from the side. "How have you been? I haven't seen you at Butterfly Manor, so I was worried…" I'd been combing over the grave markers to check who was still okay and who wasn't, after all, so it was nice to see confirmation of one person's survival.

Michi grimaced. "Sorry. I didn't get hurt too bad, so I've been with the group at Headquarters." I nodded. As spacious as Butterfly Manor was, there wasn't room for everyone. For the non-serious injuries, a lot of the other Corps members had been taken to other locations, such as the Hashira's residences, Wisteria Houses, and HQ, where Kakushi and other doctors could tend to them without complications. Michi was missing a few fingers, I noticed, but they were on his nondominant hand, so I hoped adjusting wouldn't be too difficult. Much like everyone else who was seeing me for the first time since Kibutsuji's defeat, his eyes wandered down to where I'd tied up my pant leg, a guilty look crossing over his face. "Was that…?"

I gave him a smile of reassurance that I wasn't quite feeling. Still, I could handle it for a little bit longer; I was getting a bit tired of being upset all the time. "I consider myself lucky," I said, "that I got into a fight with Kibutsuji, and this is all I have to deal with." Michi spluttered, not managing whatsoever to contain his shocked laughter, and even Zenitsu snorted beside me. I swung my leg through the air. "I'll manage. They're going to work on fitting me with a prosthetic soon."

"That's…good. Well, I know you're stubborn, Rairi-senpai. You'll be okay." I puffed up my cheeks in a pout, but it wasn't like he was wrong. If Sensei could still make Thunder Breathing look that good at his age with a peg leg, then I could at least try to be on his level by the time I was old and gray. It didn't seem like anywhere enough time, but I'd give it my best.

"Of course Rairi will be okay," Zenitsu said, his voice brimming with a pride that made me giggle, "because we're going to get married, and I'm going to make them the happiest person ever!"

Michi's eyes went wide at the revelation, and I gestured my unoccupied hand towards Zenitsu. "Ah, Zenitsu and I are engaged now," I said, like it was the most natural thing in the world. Or, well, it felt like it to me, even with everything else.

"Congratulations," Michi said, half on auto pilot, but it was still a genuine sentiment. I could tell he had questions, some of them that I wasn't in the mood to answer. He didn't voice any of them, though, instead opting for, "So you two will be living together, then?"

"Mmhmm. Our sensei left us his place to stay, since we're his successors and all." There would be some tweaks to what that meant, considering that we didn't have to train people to fight demons anymore, but I was sure we'd figure it out. I adjusted back onto my crutch and took a step forward, punching Michi's shoulder. "Once we decide on what we're teaching, you should stop by sometime. I'm not quite done being your mentor just yet, Michi-san."

Zenitsu nodded his approval and laughed. "Be careful, Michi-san. Rairi doesn't go easy on anyone."

Michi scoffed, but he looked a little bit more relaxed than before. "You don't have to tell me that."

"Sorry for making you carry me all this way."

"It's fine. We're engaged, right? I don't mind helping you get around at all." Zenitsu tipped his head back to nuzzle against my cheek, and I relaxed into the softness of his hair. While I knew that totting me piggyback for a few days wouldn't be too strenuous for him, it still wasn't an easygoing stroll by a long shot, and all the more so since he'd gone through his fair share of recovery, too. "Besides," he added, "this just helps make up for everything you've done for me."

I frowned, even if he wouldn't be able to see it. Zenitsu was fine-tuning his ability to get a read on even the tiniest of my emotions by the day, so he'd get the sentiment anyways. "Don't be silly. You've done more than enough for me. Besides, this isn't about paying back favors, since we're partners now." Still, I couldn't help but be grateful for everything he was doing for me, so I pressed a gentle kiss against the back of his neck, and Zenitsu would have jumped half a meter into the air if he weren't carrying me around.

"Hey, hey, hey! You gotta give me some warning before you do that! I almost died from the shock!"

I laughed, still not over the way he got so flustered at the slightest new piece of affection I showed him. If I played my cards right, I could have Zenitsu getting embarrassed like that for the rest of our lives. "Shouldn't it be okay, though? Since we're engaged and all." Zenitsu turned his head so I couldn't get a clear look at his face, and I hugged his shoulders a little tighter. "Hey, I mean it. Thank you."

"Any time, Rairi."

"I'll be sure to give you a piggyback whenever I'm in good enough shape to do so, too."

"I'll look forward to it."

We fell back into a comfortable silence as Zenitsu continued to follow the road. The familiar scenery was soothing, too, as we navigated the paths between the fields around us, which were starting to show the first signs of spring crops. I was more than glad to welcome the warming weather and the budding green across the trees. It felt like a metaphorical new beginning and all that jazz, which was just what we needed.

"I can walk from here," I said once we could see the house—our house—our home in the distance.

"You sure?" Zenitsu asked, though he was already squatting down so I could touch the ground. I stood as my answer, the sensation of my prosthetic still strange underneath me. I'd practiced enough over the months that I could walk on it well enough, though I still wouldn't call myself one-hundred percent coordinated by any means. I would still stumble, still feel pain from using the prosthetic for too long, still end up exhausted.

All those things still held true on that walk back home, and Zenitsu walked with me, not caring that he needed to tote our shared bag or how many breaks I needed or how much I cursed. If I stumbled, he helped me stay up. If I asked, he'd hold onto my hand. They were little things, ones that had happened thousands of times over the past few months of recovery, but I appreciated them all just the same.

By the time we made it to the door, the sun was setting—but we'd made it back, and that was what mattered most.

"We're home," Zenitsu and I said, just a few beats off of being in sync, and then we stepped through the door.

I hadn't meant to end up in Kaigaku's room, but I did anyways.

Kimiko and the other help had done a wonderful job at taking care of the house. Though it had been months since anyone had lived here, you wouldn't have been able to tell. There wasn't a speck of dust to be seen, and everything was still in place. It had been my request that they didn't clean anything out of his room, and, as I wandered in the door after my bath, I couldn't help but feel like it wasn't all that different from when we'd been here before.

I could feel the weight of Kaigaku's magatama pressed up against my pulse, and I held onto it for a moment, praying for strength to make it through this, without quite knowing how much this contained.

Abandoning my crutch near the door, I was left crawling around the room since I'd foregone putting my prosthetic back on for the night, but that was fine. As I went through the couple of drawers, the closet, it was clear Kaigaku didn't have much, had never gotten attached to material possessions. His bedding was folded into neat rectangles, a few half-read books that I recognized from Sensei's personal collection were in a stack, and a few extra pieces of clothing that he'd long outgrown since leaving home were tucked into the drawers. Aside from what Zenitsu and I had brought back, aside from the few letters of his I still had, what was even left to prove that Kaigaku had existed?

I pulled open another drawer and was beyond grateful that I was already sitting, otherwise I would've collapsed anyways. It was shoved in the back, but the cobalt blue stuck out amongst all the black, and the triangle pattern was so familiar that I had pulled it into my lap before the thought of preserving the space even occurred to me. I wouldn't have been surprised in the slightest if the haori had ended up in the trash, given Kaigaku's vocal refusal to wear it when Sensei had offered, but he had kept it in perfect condition, which was more than Zenitsu and I could say considering that ours had both gotten torn to pieces while fighting, no matter how we'd preserved the scraps.

"Rairi…?"

I looked over my shoulder, finding Zenitsu in the doorway. He'd gotten in the bath after me, but his hair didn't even look damp. How long had I been in Kaigaku's room, how much time had passed without me noticing? "Hey," I said. "Sorry, I just kind of ended up in here without noticing."

"I understand. I ended up in Sensei's room." Our shared grief lingered in the air, but it also meant we understood each other. If we ended up trapped in our thoughts in the coming years, it would be fine, because we wouldn't be alone. Zenitsu crossed the distance between us, sitting down at my side, and I noticed the bundle he'd carried in his arms—black fabric patterned with golden triangles. Though he'd preferred the more modest coloring of brown in his later years, Sensei had once had flashier tastes in his Hashira days. "I just…couldn't figure out what to do with it."

"Yeah. That's about how I feel now." I held up Kaigaku's haori, and Zenitsu and I were left in contemplative silence.

Except I did know what to do with it—or at least I knew what I wanted to do. We could have new haori made, could return to our familiar patterns and colors, but it didn't feel right. Zenitsu and I weren't the same people we had been back when we'd received our haori, and we wouldn't be the same people in the future. But in this moment, though Zenitsu was my utmost priority, I still felt them, the parts of me that loved Kaigaku and Shimizu, and I felt certain they weren't going to go away.

All that was left of Shimizu were her letters and journals, and I'd make sure those were preserved. Even if it was something simple, I wanted to keep what I had of Kaigaku as close to me as possible, too.

"If you want to wear it, you should," Zenitsu said, reading me with perfect accuracy.

I flushed, and my embarrassment wasn't just about my feelings. "You…wouldn't mind?" I asked, half unable to look at him. "You—you know how I feel. I'd be wearing his clothes. You sure that wouldn't bother you?"

"Why would it? Rairi, you love me, right?"

"O-of course I do!" It had taken me far too long to realize it, but I did love Zenitsu, and these past few months of support were more than enough to cement that feeling in me. "I-I love you, Zenitsu. That's why I—"

"Why you're considering me before yourself, just like you always do." He'd caught me, and I squirmed under his gaze, though Zenitsu was smiling. "Ah, well, that kindness is just another part of you that I love so much. But just because you love someone else, too, doesn't make your feelings for me any less strong. I can hear that for sure, so I'm not worried at all." Zenitsu slipped the still folded haori from under my hands, shaking it open and draping the fabric over my shoulders. "You and I are going to preserve Aniki and Jī-chan's memory. So go ahead and wear it, Rairi."

"Mn." What had I done to get such a caring and understanding person in my life, as my partner? Though spring had arrived, the nights were still chilly, and the combination of Kaigaku's haori and Zenitsu's hands against my shoulders helped give me a bit of warmth. "Then you can go ahead and wear this," I said, putting Sensei's haori onto Zenitsu, not giving him room to protest. "You've more than earned it, anyways. Besides, I think it looks good on you."

Zenitsu was stuck between blushing and tearing up, and I could feel my own eyes starting to water. "I-if you go saying stuff like that, I can't turn it down." Zenitsu pulled me closer, and I settled into his embrace, slipping my arms around his shoulders as our bodies fell into place together. "I swear I mean it, Rairi. I love you so much."

"I know. And I love you, too, Zenitsu. With everything I have."

As was tradition, the very first peach of the harvest made its way from the branch and into my hands, where it traveled to the house to receive a careful washing, cutting, and plating before being used as an offering. No matter what, I carved out the time to complete the ritual, and I could sometimes sit there for hours, letting the feelings wash over me. As such, it took the flick of a small and thin tongue against my cheek to bring me back to reality, and I opened my eyes to see the family shrine before me, where Sensei's remains and Kaigaku's belongings rested.

"You're right, Kaburamaru," I said, reaching up to pat the snake's scaly head, and they gave a hiss of approval, "this isn't a good time to be running late, huh?" I clasped my hands before the shrine one more time, gave my mental farewells, and stepped into the hall. Where my time had been spent in silence, it didn't take too long to find chaos—or rather, the chaos found me.

"Ririii!" Gorō called, catching onto my pantleg and tugging as soon as I was in sight. Tears pooled at the corners of her eyes; she'd inherited both her father's hair color and tendency to tear up over everything. "Mi-chan fell and scraped her arm and I don't know what to do what if she ends up hurt worse I'm sorry I was trying to look out for her!"

"There, there, Gorō-chan," I said, patting her head. "Is Papa taking care of her?" Gorō nodded, sucking in snot at the same time. "Then Mi-chan's gonna be okay. Papa knows what he's doing." It wasn't like this was anywhere close to the first scrape either of us had tended to anyways. "I'm proud of you for worrying about her; you're being a great big sister." As the youngest besides the twins, she'd been trying her best to be a good older sibling. "But don't worry; it's gonna be okay. She'll get a bandage, and then we'll all go to Tanjirō-ji-san's house, and we'll have lots of fun."

At the reminder of our upcoming trip, Gorō brightened up—oh to be in the single digits and distracted so fast! I let her lead me out to the front yard, where there were some of our bags and belongings, along with Zenitsu, who was giving Mi-chan some post scrape cuddles. Shi-tan was sitting on the sidelines, making sure their sister was okay. Though the two weren't identical twins and their hair colors were contrasting shades, the shapes of their faces made Shimizu and Mitsuri look near the same, even when dressed up in differing outfits.

"Hey there, Shi-tan," I said, patting the older twin's head. "You wanna go with Gorō-nee and Kaburamaru and tell Jei-nii we're gonna be ready soon?" Shi-chan nodded, reaching out for Gorō's hand, and I dropped the snake onto her waiting shoulders. Both kids refocused on their new task and scurried off, Shi-tan leading the way. I kept an eye on them, but it wasn't like Zenitsu couldn't hear any trouble if it happened. "Everything all good over here?"

"Yeah," Zenitsu said, standing up, Mi-chan tucked against his shoulder and playing with his ponytail as a distraction. There weren't a lot of tears from either party (Zenitsu tended to tear up just as much as the kids when something happened to one of them), so that was a good sign. "Sorry about that, love. I tried to tell Gorō-chan everything would be okay, but she ran off before I could stop her."

There was a gentle peck of his lips against mine, both greeting and apology. "Don't worry about it, sweetie. I was already heading your way. Gorō-chan didn't interrupt anything." Since I was already close, I gave Mi-chan a kiss while I was at it to the top of her head, then another when she presented her bandaged up arm to me. "Did you just fall over while playing?"

"Yeah…" Mi-chan mumbled, already looking sleepy. A nap would do wonders, and I opened up my arms to take her off Zenitsu's hands for a bit. He'd been handling the kids all morning; it was fair to step up.

"Riri, Papa," Gaku called, coming around the house. She was totting along a basket without much issue, channeling the breathing techniques we'd taught her when asked. "I think I picked enough for everyone, so we should be good to go."

I shifted Mi-chan up onto my shoulder, urging her to let go of Zenitsu's hair before he tried to walk away and everyone suffered the consequences. It didn't take long for her tiny hand to start to play with my braid, though. Zenitsu was all smiles. "Great work, Gaku-chan! I'm sure everyone's gonna appreciate it." Gaku ducked her head in embarrassment, but she kept her bangs too short for her to even try to hide her blush. Zenitsu ruffled her hair and picked up the basket of peaches. "This should be the last thing we need. Come on, why don't you help me check that everything's secure…"

Together, they headed off to the cart we'd rented for the trip, and I smiled at the sight of them, as well as when Jei, Gorō, and Shi-tan all came racing out of the front door, laughter echoing around them, each clamoring for Zenitsu to lift them up into the cart. When I breathed, the air tasted clean, and the aroma of peaches added a slight sweetness to the air. Up above, the sun was high, signaling yet another beautiful day.

Life wasn't always so pretty, so fulfilling. There were challenges, squabbles, and tragedies that could tear us apart in the past, and there would be more in the future. But it didn't change the fact that these moments were what made all of that worth it.

So we'd walk forward one step at a time. When we needed to rest, we could lean on each other.

Zenitsu jogged back over to me, his smile not having changed at all no matter how much he'd grown up, that same grin filled with love bright and wonderful as he offered out his hand for me to take. "Shall we go, love?"

"Yeah, sweetie, I'm ready."

As far as I was concerned, it didn't matter what appeared next on this world's path, because Zenitsu and I would still be walking together.

[Author's Notes]

Well, y'all, we made it! Hopefully you've enjoyed the journey.

Thanks to KlonoaDreams, onyxwolf17, akinoladakindasa, and Lexsiel for the faves, follows, and reviews! Klonoa gets the mvp slot for dropping a ton of reviews, and just all around being amazing. You're a champ.

It seems I'm incapable of writing a chapter without some sort of oof, so yeah. Getting a complete victory over Kibutsuji without losing any Hashira just wasn't realistic. Shinobu was always gonna Shinobu, but having Mitsuri and Obanai go down just seemed rather fitting for all the thematic ways this story works. But at least they got together/married before they died, so don't riot on me? I swear I'll make up for this oof in the future. But, like, all the other Hashira and Genya are okay (though def have some injuries), so forgive me maybe?

And obviously I was gonna do a flash forward to a fraction of married life and the eventual Agatsuma kiddos. Speaking of which...

It's time for a Taishō Era Secret! The Agatsuma kids are all named after the lost loved ones of Rairi and Zenitsu, though they all mostly go by nicknames. In birth order we have Gaku, Jei, Gorō, and the twins, Mi and Shi. Each birth is about two to three years apart. Rairi intended to stop after three kids, but Zenitsu convinced them to go for one more, which happened to be twins. Zenitsu and Rairi teach Total Concentration and Thunder Breathing as martial arts, without live blades, with some extra income from the peach harvest. Zenitsu also writes in his spare time, compiling The Legend of Zenitsu, which Rairi regularly critiques his too-good-to-be-true portrayal of himself in, and they've started to write some records of their own. Tanjirō, Nezuko, Inosuke, Kanao, Genya, and Aoi are all honorary aunts and uncles, and the families make frequent trips to visit each other.

Next Time: Life shining across the years. Please look forward to it!

-Avi

[11.05.2022]