Darkness was not something new to me. But this new, continuous one was.

To be honest, I was fairly used to really dark nights — especially considering how demon hunting was solely an activity for the night — but this sort of permanent one...

It made me feel uncomfortable.
And I wasn't sure what I could do about it.

Don't get me wrong, I won't change a single thing if I was given the chance — well, maybe prepare more of my blood to melt that asshat Akaza down, but otherwise, I didn't mind how things turned out to be. I think.

Well, Rengoku being alive was worth it, if nothing else. And I do have my aura-sensing abilities to feel and work, right?

Then why did this permanent darkness feel strange to me? Why was it that I almost felt...

...helpless in it?

"Miyasha-san?" Shinobu's soft voice jolted me out of my thoughts, "Are you alright?"

I chuckled lightly at her worry; she's been like this for the past few days since I woke up — her voice soft, worry evident and continuous dotting. If the reason for her worry wouldn't have been as obvious, I would have thought she had adopted me.

"I'm fine, Shinobu-san, no need to worry!" I turned to smile in the direction I heard her voice from, "And I hope you got all the samples you need of my blood?"

"Hai," I almost felt her nod as her short hair brushed against my lifted arm, "Just, let me clean it again once and put an ointment over it."

"Oh, you don't nee—"

"Your blood is very unique, Miyasha-san," Shinobu interrupted me with a somewhat sharp voice, "You should be very careful with your wounds because of it. Otherwise, it will cause you more problems than it already does — I can't believe how you are so careless about your own health while having such a high tendency to get hurt."

This time my chuckle turned into a burst of full belly laughter as my brain caught up to her exasperation, making the other female huff from what I could hear.

"I'm sorry for laughing," I apologized with no real remorse as my voice still bounced with laughter, "It's just, you sounded so young and sweet when you said that! It almost reminded me of Aoi, I swear."

It took Shinobu a few moments to respond back to me, making me wonder if I said something wrong as she gave me a watered-down response of how she needed to change the bandages around my eyes too.

These were the moments I wished the most to be able to see again because my overall ability to deduce how the other person was feeling had decreased significantly.

"Okay, so I shouldn't open my eyes, at all, right?" I finally asked once Shinobu removed my bandages and inspected the recovery around my eyes.

"Not for at least a week," Shinobu's voice made me shiver with how it was right next to my left ear, "Your eyes would be really sensitive right now, with all that damage. I'll strongly advise you to keep it covered completely at all times — or at least closed if not covered."

"Mm, sounds rather ominous, not gonna lie." I commented jokingly as I felt her move away from me, the bandages still off my face as the cream around my eyes dried, "What about the area around my eyes? Did they... melt?"

I felt Shinobu's calm aura shift as her hands gently cupped my cheek, making me suppress another shiver while I felt her lean towards me. Her aura almost smothered my senses with her being this close to me.

"There are some cuts around your face," I felt her fingers roam on what I assumed where my cuts were, "But most seem to have healed just fine. Your body has a very good healing ability, Miyasha-san~"

I silently nodded as she finally (for the last time) moved away from me, her simmering cool aura shifting as I assumed she got off the bed.

I suppressed another shiver from her yet-to-be-familiar aura, feeling a bit exposed and helpless as she came back to wrap the bandages back around my eyes. While she did that, I honestly wondered how my life even came to be as it was right now.

And while I didn't exactly regret doing what I did, I ain't sure if the repercussions are something I would be able to handle.

'Especially,' I thought off-handedly as I gently tilted my head to the side to give proper access to Shinobu for the bandages, 'Considering how that was a very big turning point for Tanjiro and the boys emotionally. Rengoku's death defined a lot of Tanjiro's determination to kill and fight later on. I don't think there's any event that can even replicate that amount of character development.'

That was an issue I wasn't sure how to tackle or even address.

Not to mention my current blindness, which was something I never even expected to happen in the first place — even all my planning and mapping didn't prepare me for something like... this to happen.

'And at a very inconvenient timing too,' I thought somewhat bitterly, 'Considering how the red district mission is supposed to be the next one.'

And with what my current health status was, I wasn't even sure if I would be able to follow them through it — or help them at all.

"Miyasha-san?" Shinobu's voice snapped me out of my thoughts, making me almost stiffen at its suddenness, "The bandages aren't too tight, are they?"

"Eh?" It took me a few seconds to process as I somewhat forced myself to relax, "Oh, no, no! It's completely fine — you did them well, Shinobu-san! Thank you so much."

"You're welcome." I heard her voice softly reply back as her aura shifted to a more warmer tone.

It was quite ironic how her aura almost resembled the cool atmosphere of a field after hours of rain — or a very cool, yet comfortable night under the moon. It felt calm, comforting, yet had a strange tone of untouchability that made her feel rather... distant.

As if she was there and yet not there at the same time.

'Maybe because she is still breathing in the past...?' The thought crossed the back of my mind as she placed some clothes in my hands.

"Here is your new set of uniform as you asked, Miyasha-san!"

I nodded thankfully as I felt the material of the clothes in my hands, my mind still reeling from my previous thoughts. Although, I denied softly as soon as Shinobu offered to help me change.

"Thank you, Shinobu-san, but I assure you I'm fine with wearing it on my own." I reassured her again, "I am quite used to changing my uniform in the dark, after all."

Which wasn't exactly a far-fetched lie since I was way more used to wearing pants and shirts than kimonos in the dark — a habit that I didn't seem to quite get out of my system from my past life.

"Hai," I could literally hear the hesitance in her voice as she reluctantly agreed with me, "I'll still be outside if you need my help, alright?"

I couldn't help but smile and thank her again as I heard the door click shut, my focus and concentration over my hearing and feeling my environment increasing since the day I woke up.

'I think I'll manage without my sight,' I mused off-handedly as I got off the bed to slowly stand up, 'All I need is practice, right?'


Silence is a rather strange thing if one ever took the time to wonder.

It's deafening at its peak and disturbing at its lowest — disturbing not because of the fear of what might be beyond the silence and the everlasting darkness I found myself in, but rather due to the fact that it gave me time.

Time to think, to feel, and to regret things, that I had avoided for so long.

"Miyasha-san?" Aoi's sudden robust aura and worried voice gave me a moment of change from the usual darkness I found myself in, "...What are you doing outside? At this time of the night?"

"Just wanted a change of scenario," I answered honestly as I didn't even bother turning towards the younger female, "...even though I can't say I have the sight to fully enjoy it." I darkly muttered, making the female beside me give out a suffering sigh.

"You shouldn't joke about your injuries like this, Miyasha-san." A pang of guilt rang in my chest I could clearly hear the worry dripping from her voice, "Just..." I heard her sigh as her voice softened, "Do you... Are you okay? Can I help you in any way?"

I chuckled at her concern, "I'm fine, sweetie." I reached out towards the direction I felt her aura in, patting her gently once I felt my hand on her head, "No need to worry, yeah? Trust me when I say I know when to ask for help, yeah?"

"You honestly don't." I chuckled at her blunt, deadpan tone, "Anyway, do you want to go back to your room? Or would you like to stay here longer?"

"...Would you wait for me if I said I'll like to stay here longer?

"Of course, I would! How can I just leave you here alone?!"

My lips tugged into a small smile as I slowly twisted my body to get up, "Then I'll leave."

"Wha—?! Miyasha-san! You don't have to lea—"

"You can call me Aneki, you know that right, Aoi-chan?" My softly spoken words made the younger female's breath hitch, "I won't mind. Also, I don't want to inconvenience you any more than I already do, dearie. So, don't worry, okay?"

"I-I..." I smiled in her direction, hoping it would elevate some of her worries for me, "...I understand, Aneki."

My heart melted as reached out to pat her again, "B-But you shouldn't do this again, do you understand?! If you want to stay outside, just tell me! I won't mind waiting for you, Aneki!"

I smiled again as I felt her hold my wrist gently and tug me through the hallways, her shy grumblings and soft comments making me feel like I wasn't alone. However, it wasn't long before she left; after all, she had to go rest too.

While I did get that, I still felt an odd sense of loneliness pang through my chest — one that I honestly hated and yet was so used to, from the past few days.

This strange pang really made me wonder if I actually wasn't alone — if I... if I actually existed. Or if all this actually existed. Maybe I was hallucinating? Or maybe it's all a blissful dream.

I knew these all were non-sense thoughts but I found help but get stuck in them during the unseeing silence.

I sighed again as those strange thoughts started buzzing in my mind again — some of which I wasn't even ready to address yet, let alone think.

This was why I didn't like silence too much. This was why I loved working and always doing something — it helped me not to think.

I sighed again as I shook my head; maybe I should leave for the porch again. The sound of the wind and tree rustling at least kept me somewhat grounded to reality. And with that thought in my mind, I got up and silently left my room for the second time that night.

However, before I could go a few steps beyond my own room, I felt a loud knock somewhere near me, making my heart skip a beat in surprise.

'Where did that come from?' I wondered absent-mindedly as I slowly stepped towards the noise, tracing my hands on the walls of the hallways gently before I felt the wooden surface of a door, 'Wait, did it come from the room across me?'

My question was answered instantly as another knock rang through the hallway, the silence of the night making it louder as I contemplated what to do.

'The knocking came from a nearby wall, not the door itself,' I silently deduced, 'But it was for sure from this room, I think.'

"Hello?" I softly called out as I stepped towards the door, "Do you... need help?" I decided to finally ask as my hands traced the door handle softly.

"Sarota?" My heart skipped again as I heard Rengoku's voice from the other side of the door, "Sarota, is that you?"

"Y-Yes," I chuckled softly once my brain realized that Rengoku was literally staying across the hallway from me, "Are you okay, Rengoku-san? Do you want me to call someone for you—?"

"No, I'm fine!" I heard him loudly reply before he toned his voice down, "What are you doing outside? Are you okay?"

"Ah, I'm fine, Rengoku-san." I smiled at the ever considerate Hashira, "I just... I couldn't sleep, so I was going for a walk."

There was a beat of silence before I heard him say something; however, his voice sounded rather muffled, making me ask him to repeat it for me again.

"Do you want to come in?" Came his soft reply, "If you are alri—"

I opened the door midway through his reply, interrupting him unknowingly as even the low sound of the door echoed in the silence of the night.

"...I apologize for interrupting you, Rengoku-san," I apologized as I slowly came in, "And sorry for the noise too—"

"It's not an issue!" He enthusiastically replied, making my lips tug into a small smile as he asked me to close the door behind me.

"Hm? Okay." I did as he asked, "I'm sorry if I woke you up with me walking around at night like that."

"You didn't," I heard him reply as I gradually traced my fingers through the objects around me to anchor my way to a chair or something to sit on, "I couldn't sleep either! And your footsteps made me wonder who—"

I almost stumbled on the corner of the bed before a large hand grabbed my shoulder, helping me stabilize my position as Rengoku gently dragged me to sit on the foot of the bed.

"Sarota?" His voice was so near me, "Are you alright!?"

"Mmhm," I chuckled nervously as I felt his aura quite near my body — he was most likely sitting up on his bed, leaning towards me, if I was sensing the outline of his aura right, "Sorry, I am not yet used to, uh, walking like this so..."

"No need to apologise for something you can't control or can't help." I heard his voice softly echo, noticing for the first time how pleasant his voice actually sounded to the ears, "Only apologize when you can change the outcome but didn't."

I chuckled at his good advice, "I will try, but let's see how far that goes — considering how Lady Luck of mine seems to no longer even bother to like me."

I heard him chuckle deeply as the bedsheets shifted a bit under the palms of my hands, "Luck sure is fickle, Sarota! Though, I do believe that she prefers those who prefer to pursue hardwork than herself!"

"What an irony," I mused out loud as I leaned back a bit, "However, our fickle-minded Lady aside, how are you? What happened? Why weren't you unable to sleep, Rengoku-san?"

"Oh," I heard him shift again as he replied to me, "I rested a lot in the evening, and now I, unfortunately, can't sleep!"

I chuckled at his antics as I proceeded to tease him, "Ah, looks like Lady Sleep decided to visit you no longer, after your long rendezvous in the evening~"

I was awarded with his boisterous laugh while my own lips set into a satisfactory smile at my achievement.

"That was a good one, Sarota!" His words bounced with mirth as he continued chuckling, "Though, I'm glad she didn't visit me tonight as I got to have you visit me instead!"

I barked out a laugh at his sweet comment, "You're too sweet, Rengoku-san, I swear. I can't believe you didn't get any female slayers swaying around you lovestruck with that tongue of yours."

"Can't say I'll want that!" I heard him rush through his words, making me wonder if I actually embarrassed him, "I mean, I'll rather have someone say that they may like me upfront so that I can court them properly! A female shouldn't be treated with any less respect!"

"That's true," I nodded to myself in agreement, "Any romantic partner should be treated with respect — especially if they are upfront and secure about their emotions. It would be a good foundation to a healthy relationship after all."

"Say Sarota, you sound very experienced about it."

"Eh," I couldn't help but smile wryly at his assessment, "Can't say I am — I mostly observed and learned, if anything." I replied before adding, "Lord help me if I was though; the twins would have nagged me to hell and back."

That actually made the male in front of me laugh as I just shook my head in exasperation at the very imagery.

"I don't think they'll be that bad, Sarota!"

"Yeah, no." I laughed as I shook my head again, "Those two will not hesitate to raise hell if they ever knew I was interested in someone. I love those two beyond anything, but damn they are as tedious as when they were little kids."

A sudden moment of silence greeted me once I finished replying, making me wonder if I said something to make Rengoku uncomfortable.

"You love them, hm? As brothers?" Rengoku's question made me a bit confused as he pressed on, "Or something—?"

"What?" I blurted out at his very intrusive and rather out-of-character question, "Of course as brothers! What else can I love them as?!"

"Seniors!" Came his very cheeky reply, making my face light up in a blush as I finally caught on to what he made me admit, "Although, they would love it if you told them that! They really want you to call them Aniki!"

"Oh Lord, please just kill me." I groaned as I rubbed my hand on my forehead, "I never expected you to be this cheeky, Rengoku-san."

"Hm, can't say I understand what you are saying!"

"Like hell you don't," I scowled at the male in front of me, "I swear, you are no better than Hiro-senpai, at times."

That made the Flame Hashira chuckle as I continued to scowl.

"I'll take that as a compliment!"

"You clearly shouldn't," I dryly replied, making him chuckle some more as I shook my head, "Anyhoo, how is your recovery going? And the injuries? No one exactly told me anything about your injuries and I couldn't even ask you the last time you visited me."

"My recovery is going well!" He replied enthusiastically as he explained, "All my open wounds are healed and I'm just waiting for my shoulder to heal and set before I am released!"

"Shoulder?" I asked as I vaguely remembered his left shoulder being a bit... strangely angled at the latter portion of our fight, "Which bone did you break?"

"Oh, my left collar bone and my left upper arm!" He replied unnaturally enthusiastically, "I think? The doctors told me that my shoulder bones are shattered and should take a while to set and heal!"

"I—" I choked over my words as this news made me feel several emotions altogether, "How are your even— how can you even be this enthusiastic about it? What the hell?"

"Ah, can't say I'm enthusiastic about it." I heard him chuckle as his voice somewhat deepened, "But, I can't do anything about it now, can I?"

"...I'm sorry to hear that." My heart ached as I heard his sombre tone.

"You have nothing to apologize for, Sarota." I felt his hand on my own two, stopping me from twisting my fingers that I was doing absent-mindedly in habit, "You... You did everything you could. And I'm very thankful for that. I-I should have done more and yet I didn't. Please forgive me for that!"

"I... what are you even talking about?"

I heard him laugh again, though this time it was devoid of any humour, "You are a very diligent woman, Sarota. I'm glad to have you fight beside me. Although, I can't help but feel I could have done more to prevent—"

"Rengoku," I immediately interrupted him as I finally registered the source of his guilt, with no less sense of horror, "What are you talking about?! You couldn't have done anything to avoid it — I... I can't believe you think that way! You... You literally dragged me away from further harm and..." I shook my head as words failed me, "Rengoku, you literally calmed me down from a potential panic attack and protected me from being injured any further — even when you yourself were so severely injured. Please just... Please don't blame yourself for something you can't control."

"I... know what you are saying is the truth," I heard him huff before he continued, "But I still let you almost die. I... shouldn't have let you get involved—"

"And die yourself then?" I sharply asked, my brain still hung up on the fact that he was feeling guilty because of my stupid decisions, "Rengoku, you know as well as I do that Akaza was too strong for you to handle alone. The only reason either of us is even alive is because you allowed me to fight with you. In fact, I'm only alive because you knew when to quit and the only reason I don't have any serious injury except my eyes is because you protected me."

I breathed heavily as I gripped his hand with both my own in assurance, his palm warm and rather large in my hands.

"You... You did everything you could, senpai." I absent-mindedly said as the whole fight flashed in front of my eyes, "In fact, it was me who kept hindering your attacks, holding you back with how less I was prepared for it—"

"It's not your fault," I heard him softly cut me off as I felt his hand squeeze my own.

"Neither it is yours." I huffed, feeling light-headed as I took a deep breath to calm myself, "I can't believe you can be this stupid after all the master-level advices you gave me."

I felt the mood lighten up a bit as Rengoku chuckled lightly.

"Just, stop thinking that way, you get it?" I stated firmly, feeling my heart slowly sink through my chest as I felt worse for making him feel like this, "I didn't die, so please, stop blaming yourself for this."

It took us a few moments to collect ourselves as we just sat there, in the middle of the night, feeling guilty for something we both couldn't have controlled any better.

Or maybe I could have — but that is not a thought I'm quite ready to dive in yet.

"...Thank you," Rengoku's sombre voice broke the silence, somehow highlighting it even more as his voice kept me grounded to the present, "Thank you for saying all that, Sarota."

"...Miyasha," I finally replied, "Call me Miyasha, if it's not an issue with you?"

I heard him hum before he replied, "Then, call me by my given name too, Miyasha!"

'...what's his first name, again?' I thought stupidly, feeling rather ashamed to actually ask him that upfront.

"Um, I hope you won't mind if I just, uh, call you senpai instead?" I tried to bargain shyly, "Like, Rengoku-senpai? Ren-senpai?"

"That'll be great!" I heard him reply enthusiastically as he squeezed my hands with his large one before removing his hand altogether, "I like it!"

"I'm glad you do, Ren-senpai." I tested the new nickname on my tongue, "I think Toshi-senpai is gonna flip when he hears me call you that, though."

That made him laugh genuinely again, lifting the previous sombre mood into a quite lighter one.

"Ah, you can make that up to him by calling him Aniki!"

"...why are you advocating for them, again? What are those idiots paying you with — my embarrassment?"


It was hours later that I realised how long we were chatting — in fact, it was apparently no longer even night when Rengoku let it slip that he was feeling sleepy.

"Senpai..."

"Yes, Kohai?" His reply made me honestly sigh — especially when I felt his aura shift into a softer note of warmth.

And while I did appreciate him being happy, amusement at the cost of my misery was not something I could bring myself to approve.

"You are honestly too much." I huffed as I slowly got off the bed — my legs instantly protesting as they got that pin-pricking feeling all over it, "You could have told me that you were sleepy or that it was getting this late; or rather, early considering it's not even night now!"

"I could have," he shamelessly agreed, "But I didn't want to interrupt our chat! I wanted to talk to you more!"

His honest reply made my heart melt; though, I didn't let him know that since he was already cheeky enough.

"You are such a sweet-talker, I swear to Lord." I commented instead, making him laugh again as I could finally stand on my own two feet again.

"I'll take that as a compliment from you, Miyasha!"

"As you clearly shouldn't," I dryly replied, chuckling alongside him as I gradually traced my way back to the door with my hands, "Anyway, I'll leave you to rest up a bit — and no, I ain't talking to you until you get full eight hours of sleep. I'll even ask Shinobu-san about it if I had to and you know how mad she'll be if she knows you are stressing out your body."

"Well, she'll scold you too!"

I paused at the door, "That's a sacrifice I'm willing to make!" I replied back haughtily before sticking a tongue out towards his general direction.

His laugh rang through the room as I closed the door behind me, my mood feeling better than last night and yet I knew it was only temporary.

'However temporary it might be,' I mused silently as I felt my way back to my room, 'I can still savour it, right?'

Still, it was very nice talking to him like this — and if his own invitation to come to talk to him again later was anything to go by, then he enjoyed our chats as well. Even though we talked nothing of actual importance during almost the whole of it.

'His feelings due to my... condition were a surprise, though.' The thought sobered me up quickly as I flopped on my bed, 'I... I didn't think it would affect him that much... I honestly didn't even think it would affect anyone.'

To be honest, I still can't make myself believe that people would care. No, maybe that's a wrong assessment — people will care, but it's... it's not something that significant to worry about. After all, I'm just a normal slayer — I'm not even a Hashira.

In fact, it was Rengoku that everyone should be more focused on; especially if one considered how bad Rengoku's own condition was.

I took in a deep breath, thinking back how Shinobu, the twins or even the three stooges didn't mention how Rengoku was forced to retire because of his injuries. And honestly, while it hurt quite a bit to be left out of the loop, what made me feel worse was how well Rengoku was actually taking it.

'Even when he didn't want to... And yet, I couldn't even give him that. I couldn't even save him properly—'

I immediately tried shutting off that train of thought, instead of focusing on the sound of my own breathing to calm myself in the eerie silence of the early morning.

'I could have done so much more,' The thought involuntarily ran past my mind, making me give out a shuddering breath, 'I could have prevented all this if only I wasn't a coward.'

"...If only I was a bit more prepared." I gave out a humourless chuckle, "If only."

I tried calming my emotions again as I felt my eyes getting slightly wetter. I didn't want to cry right now and let Shinobu find out with my wet bandages — in fact, I don't deserve to cry on this.

'I am not the one who was permanently injured in the shoulder neither did I get forcibly retired and felt guilty for something they didn't even—'

A sudden knock on the door snapped me out of my thoughts, my body immediately stiffening as I felt Aoi's aura on the other side.

"Come in, dearie." I softly called out as I got up, the sound of the door opening echoed loud in the room as I smiled in Aoi's direction, "Good morning, dearie. Isn't it quite early for you to be up and about?"

"Good morning, Aneki," she greeted before I felt her step in towards me, "I brought your medicines for the morning and food since you were up all night again — you must be hungry and I really don't want your blood pressure to be low again, after all the blood you lost."

I smiled at her genuine concern, my heart feeling warm and so undeserving of her sweet worries.

"Thank you, Imouto," I let the word roll out of my mouth, feeling oddly guilty as I smiled towards the younger female beside me, "I'm sorry for worrying you so much."

"...you shouldn't apologize so much." Aoi bluntly replied, making me chuckle at the coincidence of being told the same thing twice, "You are injured, and it's my duty to help you heal... Aneki. Please eat and rest now, okay? If you need, then I'll help you to the porch — though, please eat before that."

"Thank you," I softly thanked her again as I heard her leave, the glass of medicine still in my hand.

'Maybe a change of scenery is in order.'


It was a nice day outside — the flowers were blooming, the birds were singing.

And honestly, it just made me feel even more lonely and out of place as I just sat there in the warmth of the sunlight. I knew I most likely was feeling the initial depression of suddenly losing my eyesight or something, but that didn't help me either — I still don't know how to deal with it.

I sighed lightly as I leaned back onto the wooden pillar, feeling tired but not sleepy yet.

"Aneki?" My head snapped towards the distant voice calling my name, the source of it coming from somewhere around the far left of the yard.

"Hai, Itsu-kun?" I smiled as I felt the blond slayer's body tumble into mine in an uncoordinated hug.

"...hello," he softly said as I felt him press his head into my lap, making a smile tug on my lips as I gently ruffled his already messy hair.

"Hello, Itsu-kun~" I chuckled as I heard him grunt and lean into my caress, "Good morning! I hope you slept well last night?"

"Mmhm~!" Zenitsu finally sat up from the strange hug, his hands still attached to my uniform — reminding me of a child's tugging their mother's clothes in comfort, "I slept great! But that stupid boar dragged me first thing in the morning—"

I smiled softly as I listened to him rambling about how Inosuke was using him as some kind of experimental doll to practice his physical moves, while Zenitsu himself was now getting better and better at dodging that 'muscle head'.

"I hope he is not beating you too much, like before?" I asked unsurely, making the blonde male shake his head as I felt his bangs on my arm while he leaned on me.

"He's just training. We both are. He doesn't beat me now but chases me everywhere."

The imagery that presented me made me laugh loudly.

"Ah, what a misfortune!" My smile stretched as I felt Zenitsu lightly hum and move in a way that turned his face towards my direction.

"Aneki," I felt his fuzzy aura shift to a darker, more concentrated form as he spoke, "Are you alright?"

"Huh?"

"Are you alright?" He repeated for me as he slowly detached himself to sit in front of me properly, "Are you... are you feeling okay?"

"Eh?" I frowned, thinking where this was coming from, "I'm fine, sweetie—"

"Your heartbeat," his words made my heart skip as I finally remembered how much of a good hearing he had, "It's sad. Warm and caring like before but also... woeful now."

"...I'm fine, dearie," I sighed as I tried to assure him of something I myself wasn't sure of, "It's just — the silence really bothers me now, since I can't see anything anymore. It makes me feel... feel like I'm detached from the world and it worries me a bit, that's all."

"You can always talk to us when you feel like that," I heard him softly relay, "We miss you a lot, Miyasha-aneki."

"Oh, dearie," I reached out to gently rub my hands over his head and cheeks, "There, there, I'm here for you, alright? I can't promise if I'll always be able to seek you out when I feel like that, but I do promise I'll never mind you four visiting me whenever you want to. After all, the chaos you four bring is something I personally do enjoy~"

I heard the younger male laugh softly as I patted his cheeks gently.

"There, your laugh is like music to my ears — always keep laughing and smiling like that, Itsu-kun." I smiled again as I felt him remove my hand from his cheek and cover it in both of his.

"Aneki?" I hummed in reply as I felt him cup my hand in his like he was holding something delicate, "Can I suggest you something?"

I nodded absent-mindedly as my mind fleetingly compared his delicate hold with Tomioka's warm yet cautious hold, and Rengoku's casual yet firm one.

Ironic how even such a simple act differed coming from one individual to the other.

"If silence bothers you a lot," Zenitsu's voice made me focus on the present conversation as he continued, "Then maybe you can sing? Or practice an instrument? Then you won't have to always stay in the silence when no one is around."

That... is actually not a bad idea.

"That's a really good idea, Itsu-kun," I admitted out loud as my mind reeled with memories of the music I once used to listen to a lifetime ago, "Yeah, maybe I can try that!"

An involuntary smile formed on my lips as I was suddenly reminded of a song I used to hum a lot as a lullaby, the song immediately getting stuck in my head as I imagined the animated video I had found it on the first time I heard it.

"You remember any songs?"

"Hm?" My focus shifted back to the blond male in front of me, "Oh yeah, I remember many! I used to listen to a lot of songs while growing up, after all."

"...Can you sing one for me?" My heart skipped in surprise at his request, "Please?"

"...I haven't sung any in years, Itsu-kun," I admitted to him honestly, "But, uh, I don't mind singing to you right now. It's just... it's in another language and it won't be that good—"

"I don't mind!" I heard him reply enthusiastically, "Please sing for me, Aneki!"

A gentle smile tugged on my lips as I patted his hands that were still cupping my other one. After taking a deep breath, I decided to start singing the song in a softer tone.

"Look at the stars, look how they shine for you," I internally winced at how scratchy and unsure my voice sounded, "And everything you do — yeah, they were all yellow."

I continued singing softly, my voice slowly stabilising to a tone that seemed to suit better to the sweet melody of the song — the song that rang first in my mind when I thought back to my past life.

"So, then I took my turn; what a thing to've done," I smiled softly as I felt Zenitsu shift and lean back on me again while I continued singing in English, "And it was all yellow."

Singing out loud like this reminded me of how much everything had changed — how I wasn't in my past life, where I had a smoother, better voice. It made me miss my past body — especially when I heard myself sing in English again.

"I drew a line, I drew a line for you," I paused for a moment as I felt Zenitsu gasp when I translated the song in Japanese midway through, "What a thing to do; and it was all yellow."

I preferred my voice in Japanese than in any other language — it made my voice sound different than when I spoke English and I could just avoid comparing my body in this life with my past one's.

I know it was stupid comparing like this, but I could never really get myself out of it — and after so many years, I no longer think I can.

Despite my stupid insecurities, I kept singing — in Japanese rather than English, yes, but I still did sing.

"Look at the stars, look how they shine for you," I softly sang the ending, feeling a strange sort of calmness in me that I didn't remember ever feeling before, "And all the things that you do."

"Did you like it?" I softly asked to break the silence that had settled in after I finished singing, "I know it wasn't the best I coul—"

"You have such a beautiful voice, Miyasha-aneki." Zenitsu's serious tone made my heart skip, "It was so... it made me feel so warm. Even if I couldn't understand in the beginning, but your voice made it sound so... pretty and caring."

I laughed lightly as I caressed his head again, "You're too kind, dearie. But I'm glad you liked it."

"...it was a very sweet song," I heard him admit, "Did you write it?"

"Ah, can't say I have that much talent, dearie," I chuckled at his assumption, "That'll be a copyright infringement if I claimed I did!"

"What's that?" I heard him curiously ask before the sound of our names being called snapped our attention to the people coming in our direction.

"Tanjiro!" I felt Zenitsu get up from beside me as I felt Tanjiro and Inosuke's aura approaching us rapidly, "Inosuke!"

"Zenitsu! Where had you gone?!" I chuckled at Tanjiro's scolding tone, "We were searching everywh—" I frowned slightly in confusion as I heard him cut himself off in the middle, his aura dimming quite a bit quite suddenly.

"...Are you okay, Jiro-kun?" I asked gently as sat up properly, "What happ—?"

"Aneki just sang for me!" Zenitsu claimed loudly, making me frown even more at his sudden outburst, "And she can sing really well!"

"Wha-What are you—"

"Will you sing another song for us, Aneki?!"

"Uh, Itsku-kun—"

"Please~!" I felt him lean on me as he kept begging, making me sigh as I shook my head in exasperated affection.

Oh my Lord, what did I get myself into, this time?


Okay, I just found out that this fanfic of mine is literally uploaded on another site or 'mirror site' that I absolutely don't approve of. However, it seems like I may not be able to do anything about it, so I humbly ask whoever reading this to know that the ORIGINAL work of this story is only available on Wattpad, Archive of our Own (AO3) and Fanfiction_net.

Please visit these sites to support the original author and since this is gonna be copied to that site as well, if you are reading from there, please leave that site. Thank you.

Anyway, now that is out of the way — here's another chapter! Again, as I said in the last chapter, there's gonna be a bit of angst and a lot of existential crisis.

But! There'll be a lot of relationship-building done too, so stay tuned for it! This arc is gonna be a big one, I'm afraid, but I assure you that you'll get a healthy dosage of other Hashiras and Miyasha's overall improvement!

Taishou Secrets
Miyasha's love language is physical touch — making her express her affection by touching people around her through patting, hugging and caressing. Meanwhile, (my personal headcanon) Giyuu's love language is also physical touch — but instead of it being expressive like Miyasha's, it's more in the sense that if he likes or is comfortable with someone, then he allows them to touch him; as we seem him being touchy-feely with Miyasha.

And yes, a single love language can have such drastic two sides as it's kind of a scale or a spectrum — different people express it differently! Also, do comment if you are interested in knowing such headcanons of mine about other characters because I sure do have a lot!

Now, onto the review replies!

jadeisa31: Hello, dearie! Thanks for your review! And the word 'sigh' means to exhale air when you are feeling stressed or irritated! I'll highly suggest you keep a dictionary nearby if anything confuses you, or else ask me in reviews! I'll love to help you!

Guest 1: Ah, they did spend a lot of time on the train together! So, who knows~

starrat: Thank you for your review and I hope you liked this chapter!

MehScrewIt: Haha, that quote of Rengoku killed me too, I swear! The manga is really good and I am following it to the letter for this fanfic at this point! And I'm glad you stuck so far with the fanfic xD I'm a bit slow at updating, but I assure you I ain't giving it up!

Guest 2: Thank you for your kind review!

Guest 3: I know right? She always keeps getting injured — even the twins are frustrated at this point, lol. Jokes apart, I know how ya feel, and trust me when I say both me and Miyasha are working on it! She has a lot to learn before she stops taking damage!

Nozomi Akiyama: And thank you for your review~! I hope you enjoy this chapter as well!

And that'll be all for this chapter! Thank you so much for your kind reviews and please review this one as well if you want to— I love reading from you guys, and honestly, it motivates me like no other ^^

Stay safe and stay healthy!