Sanemi hates a lot of things. Like, a lot, a lot. The things he loves, on the other hand, could probably be counted on one hand. It includes, well… me, ohagi, rhinoceros beetles, a good fight, and whacking people. It's why his training was dubbed the Infinite Pounding Training.
It was a little difficult trying to sleep in the morning when I could hear Sanemi's loud screaming and the slayers' cries. I tried to be hospitable; giving out food and refreshment, helping the hurt and injured. While my involvement was announced via crow, some of the slayers still had a hard time interacting with me.
It is hard for them since they are all trained to kill demons, and some are rightfully scared. Though, it is also very hard for them because if they so much as look at me wrong (according to Sanemi's standards), Sanemi would whack them relentlessly after their short break. And if they looked at me right, (still according to Sanemi's standards) Sanemi would threaten to kill them. I don't really understand what kind of look Sanemi was talking about. Most learned to just accept what I gave them and then run off.
"Shouldn't you be sleeping? Hey, you don't have to prepare food for them." Sanemi said, picking up an onigiri I made and munching on it. "You should really give them more breaks, Sanemi. They'll all just fall over quickly if you won't let them rest and eat. At least let me make them these."
"Huh, they can just go outside. Forage and hunt." I rolled my eyes, making myself dizzy for a little bit. Sanemi chuckled at that, warm hand ruffling my head. "Alright, I'll put these out and they can grab one. You don't have to serve anyone. You're the lady of the house. Come 'ere." He grabbed my cloak, wrapping it over my shoulders before pecking me on the lips.
"I'll make sure they make less noise." Sanemi promised. Now I'm scared for those training under him.
I was woken up by a loud scream one late afternoon. "Ah. Zenitsu must be here." It was the only logical conclusion. I shuffled into the kitchen, and sure enough, the loud voice belonged to Zenitsu. I was able to see them through the kitchen window. Everyone was bruised – aside from Sanemi, of course, as he did the bruising. I sighed and started preparing dinner for everyone.
"Ahhh! Y/N-chan! You're really here!" It felt so long ago now, but it was Zenitsu I spent most of my time with after the, uh… train incident. He was there when Sanemi took me away. Hmm, back then if someone told me I'd fall in love with the angry, scared man who took me I'd call them crazy.
"Hello, Zenitsu." I greeted as I set down the huge pile of onigiri I made. The other slayers quietly thanked me as they took their share. Newcomer Zenitsu, on the other hand, chose to chat with me. "I was so worried back then; I didn't know what would happen to you! I'm so glad to see you unharmed. Ah, you're so sweet, you made these for us?" He picked one up clumsily, causing a clump of rice to fall off. He didn't care, though, and started munching on it.
While Zenitsu was busy munching happily on his treat, Sanemi was slowly marching towards us, a scowl deep on his face. I couldn't help but giggle at that. I guess I should expect another rant about how weak this generation of slayers was. Maybe I should just tell him he's just a whole lot stronger than them. I was about to greet him when Zenitsu suddenly took my hands in his.
"That was delicious, Y/N-chan! You'd be a wonderful wife. Let's get married!" What?
Zenitsu was suddenly yanked away from me and was violently slammed to the ground. "Touch her again and I'll slaughter you." Sanemi threatened before adding, "besides, I already beat you to it." Huh? That was confusing. He guided me back inside the house, leaving Zenitsu lying on the ground outside.
"What was that about?" I asked him the moment we were alone. He sighed, shoulders slumping a bit. "I was planning on asking you once everything settled down. I talked about it with your brother." Oh. I forgot about that. Of all things, I didn't really expect them to talk about that. Still, thinking about Sanemi planning a future with me made me feel warm inside. But I think it's a little silly that he'd plan about asking me a question that he already knew my answer to.
Sanemi finally let everyone take a few hours to rest, himself included, so I went outside to see what else our guests needed. Also, I was thinking of apologizing to Zenitsu for getting slammed earlier.
Zenitsu looked fine, actually. He was still very noisy, complaining about Sanemi's harsh treatment. Oh, Genya was sitting near him. I didn't know he was here already. I thought of greeting him, but then remembered that he didn't know me and I only knew of him thanks to my visions and Sanemi. I thought for a bit and decided to just approach him and avoid using his name.
I asked him if he needed anything, yet he just looked at me almost the same way Sanemi does. They really look alike, and Genya even have some scars. "You're a demon." I nodded. What was there to say to that? "You seem so carefree. Aren't you scared you're surrounded by demon slayers? Aren't you a prisoner here?"
"I'm not –"
"The wind guy's in love with her." Zenitsu murmured suddenly, surprising us both… well, it was mostly what he said that surprised Genya. "Nem – I mean, Shinazugawa is in love with you?" They're not wrong, but I felt like I was burning. It was embarrassing. Half of me wanted to gush about Sanemi to them, the other half wanted to just hide in my futon. I chose to stay quiet and excused myself, saying I'd make more food.
The next day, I woke up late in the afternoon to see Tanjirou had arrived and was already looking swollen and bruised. "Ah, hello!" He greeted, smiling at me. Well, half a smile and half a wince of pain. "Maybe we should put some ice on it, to ease the swelling." Willing ice to build upon my hand. But it was so cold I was afraid I'd hurt him so I suggested we get a clean rag. We were chatting a bit when we heard what sounded like Genya's voice.
"Wait up, aniki! I wanna talk to you about something."
Both Tanjirou and I paused, not knowing what to do.
"Wow, you're annoying. You know I have no brother. Now cut the crap or I'll shred you to pieces." Oh, Sanemi. "Don't talk to me like we're friends. From what I've seen, you have no talent whatsoever. Just leave the demon hunters. Those who can't use breaths have no right to be called swordsmen."
Knowing Sanemi, I was able to decode his… ah, caring message to Genya. It's dangerous, being a demon hunter. Especially when you can't use breaths. I don't want you to die so quit while you can. That was what Sanemi was trying to say. But it just sounded like he was belittling Genya. He's being protective in his own, very stupid, way.
Sanemi turned and began to walk away, but that did not stop Genya from saying his piece. "Wait, Aniki! I've always wanted to apologize to you."
"Yeah, I seriously don't give a shit. Now go. Screw off."
"But… I even at demons… So, I could fight." Of course, Sanemi knew that already. But hearing it from Genya himself must have been very different. "You what? Demons… you actually ate demons?" I was only able to follow what happened next because I was a demon… Sanemi was so fast when he ran towards Genya. Why he did that, I didn't completely understand. Tanjirou disappeared from his spot beside me, tackling Genya out of the way.
They both tumbled outside, taking a whole shoji panel with them which caused the late afternoon sun rays to filter inside the house. The slayers resting outside started screaming… Zenitsu's voice drowning everyone else.
"What are you doing? Are you trying to kill Genya?" Tanjirou was quick. He was ready to stand between them while I was still standing where I was, frozen. My eyes and ears caught up to what was happening, but everything else wasn't. My mind, most of all, was still stuck on asking why.
Genya was Sanemi's only living relative. Of course, he's important to him. He fought their own mother… killed her just so he could protect him and their siblings. It's only natural that Sanemi didn't want Genya to be a demon slayer, let alone be part of the upcoming battle. Vision or not, I should've seen this coming. I knew Sanemi reacted to situations differently from almost everyone else.
"I'm not killing him. That would be easy but against the code of conduct. I'll just leave him incapable of regenerating. When he does, he can quit the demon hunters and I'll forgive him."
Tanjirou, being who he was, declared that he would not let Sanemi hurt Genya. An easy solution for Sanemi was to incapacitate him first. What was I doing, just standing and watching?
Sanemi and Tanjirou were fighting; Zenitsu was trying to pull away Genya, but he made the mistake of insulting Sanemi, making Genya punch him.
"Stop!" I felt my power surge over me before the ground and everyone's feet were suddenly wrapped in frost. Everyone was frozen… well, I did freeze their feet, but they were mostly just surprised. And some looked ready to attack me since they really were trained to attack demons.
Sanemi, Tanjirou, Genya… all of them recovered and started to complain, screaming at me why they did what they did. "I don't care! You're all going to stop this now… don't make me step out there." It sounded like I was trying to intimidate them all into submission. But what I really said was aimed at Sanemi. The sun was still out. If I step foot outside, I'd burn. He understood, breaking the frost connecting his feet to the ground. He was beside me in the blink of an eye, and I turned to go deeper inside the house.
"Tsk, you're all lucky she's here."
Sanemi followed me, and once we reached our room and he slid the door closed, I turned to him. I opened my mouth a few times… but nothing I could think of saying seemed right. All I could think of doing was to flick Sanemi's forehead… no. He deserved at least a punch. So I punched him by his shoulder, taking advantage of my strength as a demon.
"Ow! Did you just… did you just punch me?"
"What were you thinking, Sanemi?"
"Tsk." I waited for him to continue, but he stayed quiet.
"I really doubt that display out there made Genya consider leaving and starting a life of peace." He grumbled, "Well, then he's stupid."
"Hmph, stupidity must be a Shinazugawa men signature, then." Instead of exploding in anger, he surprised me by heartily laughing at that. His laughter only made me angrier, reversing our usual roles.
"There's nothing to laugh about! You said we should avoid misunderstandings and be honest to each other, why can't you extend that to your brother? Goodness, I really want to hit you in the face!" I couldn't explain the anger I felt. It surprised and disturbed me that I seemed more agitated than Sanemi. Did we switch brains?
He finally calmed down enough to speak, ruffling my head as he did. "I love this side of you. You used to be so meek… you were almost afraid of your own shadow. Look at you now, bossing me around." He looked extremely pleased with himself. I pouted; anger I was feeling completely evaporated. "I learned it from watching you."
"I noticed you're learning a lot from me." He added with a very satisfied smirk on his face. "Good thing I'm not a simpleton, huh?" Oh. So, he really was affected by what Tomioka-san said. Speaking of, I didn't really know where that came from, and why he'd say something like that. I couldn't tell whether it was out of character for Tomioka-san since I didn't really know him.
A flick to my forehead tore me from my thoughts, "Hey, don't think about Tomioka." "I wasn't…" I protested weakly. I knew it didn't work the moment the words left my mouth.
"This reminds me… I gotta set that jerk straight. Come with me?"
After making sure I was safe from the sun and comfortable, Sanemi and Tomioka-san went on to business. And business meant going at each other with wooden swords. I've seen Sanemi fight before… saw how powerful he is. But seeing him going at it with Tomioka-san was a different experience. It was beautiful.
"Ora Ora! What's wrong? You're no different from the rest of us!" Sanemi was egging on Tomiok-san who just stayed quiet. An attack from him broke both of their practice swords. Sanemi was unfazed. "Okay, time to pummel each other to death with fists." My feet moved before my brain processed anything else.
"Wait, wait, wait! Ah! Y/N-chan's smoking!" Tanjirou appeared from nowhere and suddenly began jumping around and pointing at me. Both Sanemi and Tomioka-san turned towards me, and in a flash, I was lifted off my feet and brought inside where the sun couldn't touch me. "Are you okay? Shit, why'd you stepped out like that?" Sanemi said, fussing over me.
"You were talking about pummeling each other to death! What was I supposed to do?"
"Not walk out in the sun!" Sanemi was looking over my face when Tomioka-san appeared behind him, Tanjirou by his side. "Y/N-san, are you –" Tomioka-san began, but Sanemi cut him off, shielding me as if Tomioka-san was going to steal me away. Sanemi spotted Tanjirou then. "Hey, you're not supposed to get near me and you dared to peek in on us, you little twerp!"
"Never mind that, Shinazugawa! Y/N-san is hurt and she isn't healing… Something that small should've healed already." Tomioka-san made a move as if he was going to touch me but thought better of it and just stood where he was.
"I'm fine. I just need any animal meat… this isn't gonna kill me."
"Eh? But Nezuko just… heal without needing to feed."
"Tsk, just shut up you two. We know what to do!" Sanemi declared, putting more distance between us and the other two. "Eh! But we're just trying to help. Can't we just get along? Can't we just share some ohagi? I'll make enough of it to fill our tummies." Tanjirou offered.
"Making fun of me now, huh?" Sanemi's sensitive with regards to his love of ohagi… so his reaction to Tanjirou was understandably hostile. Huh? How did Tanjirou know about his preference?
"Wha? No! No, I'm serious. You like ohagi, don't you, Shinazugawa-san?" Tanjirou looked so innocent as he talked, "When I was training at your place, I smelled the slight fragrance of mochi flour the whole time. I smelled matcha and ohagi, so… I figured…"
"Shinazugawa… you like ohagi?" wondered Tomioka-san. "Ohagi's delicious!" Added Tanjirou. "Do you like crushed or course red beans? I loved my grandma's ohagi, and…"
"Ahhh!" Sanemi actually punched Tanjirou.
"He's passed out." Tomioka-san announced when he checked on Tanjirou. Sanemi was all rage. He still grabbed my cloak despite the sun starting to set. Yeah, with him the way he was, there was no way we'd be sitting and waiting for the sun to set with Tomioka-san and Tanjirou. And there was also the issue of my healing. How could I be so stupid?
"Ugh… where are we?" I asked the moment the cloak was taken off me. See, Sanemi wrapped me in my cloak so well that I wasn't able to see. All I could hear was Sanemi angrily stomping away from Tomioka-san who asked where we were going.
It was already dark, but orange can still be seen on the horizon. We weren't far from Tomioka-san's home. "We need to take care of that before we go home." Sanemi pointed at a spot on my forehead. Ah, my burn. "Oh, yes. Maybe there are rabbits around here." I started to stand, looking for an animal to eat. But, Sanemi grabbed my hand. "You know that won't work… besides, I'm right here."
Ah. "Alright." I expected him to prick his finger. But he bit his lip, causing delicious blood to flow. It reminded me of our first kiss. When I realized what he wanted to do, I suddenly felt extremely shy. "Pricking your finger would have been fine, I could just suck it."
"Suck what?" Sanemi teased, smirk on his face and blood dripping down to his chin. With a sigh, I gave up. We kissed deeply, me getting both nourishment and pleasure. "Mmnh…" I darted my tongue over the small nick he made in his lip, greedily lapping up what he willingly gave me. I felt him tighten his hold on my head, pulling me closer and deepening our kiss.
He sopped bleeding, yet we were still kissing. I wasn't fully satisfied, but we needed to catch our breath. Sanemi smiled, eyes trailing over my burn spot that was already healed. "Your lips are swollen."
"Of course. You're a real kissing monster, aren't you Y/N?"
"Hey!" He gestured towards me with his hand, and despite his teasing, I eagerly held onto his offered hand. We started walking.
"So… about sucking something." Sanemi started, "Do you want to try?" I tilted my head in confusion. "Suck what?" Sanemi stopped walking and drew closer to me just to whisper, "my cock."
"Sanemi!" It was simply scandalous! I should've been used to him talking like that… but – ugh. "Ha, you're so red. You've already seen it, touched it… had it in you so many times." Oh my god… I should've just let myself burn to death earlier. I felt embarrassed but found myself laughing along with Sanemi anyway.
We continued walking, reaching the long staircase leading up to Tomioka-san's estate. Gathering my courage, I asked him about his request. He… ugh, ate me out. I should return the favor. "About sucking you… aren't you scared I'd ugh… bite it off? I am a demon." People shouldn't really want a demon's mouth anywhere near them. Though, Sanemi isn't like most people.
"Then I'll die a happy man."
We continued chatting as we walked, thank goodness we went on to tamer topics. Somehow, we ended up talking about Tanjirou. "You should apologize to him. And to Genya. And Tomioka-san. Maybe I should make a list of the people you should apologize to."
"Tsk, that brat's messed up in the head. That punch might've cured him so he probably should thank me." I was about to retort when a whiff of wind suddenly hit us, bringing along with it the pungent smell of a demon… of Kibutsuji. Sanemi sensed it, grabbing at something.
"The fuck is this?" He asked, a crushed eyeball-looking thing falling from his free hand. "It smelled like him; like Kibutsuji." And just then, a crow arrived.
"Emergency summon! Attack on the Ubuyashiki Estate!" "Oyakata-sama!"