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The veil stood tall and widely. Glowing brightly against the night sky, only contested by the full moon peeking through thick clouds.
You still had no idea how long you had been holding the veil closed. Or how much longer you could keep your grip on it. Hours both stretched and shrunk indefinitely while you held your post. The sounds of battles could have ceased a while ago, but the hum of the partition and the fatigue of it all consumed most of your attention. Your head was growing too heavy to think right, and you thought you heard faint voices in the distance. You stole a quick glance into the dark forest, and saw nothing in the veil’s glow.
Am I so tired to have started hallucinating?
You return your attention back to your work, fighting to keep your eyes open when a hand waves in front of your vision. Startled, you jump back until you recognize a slayer uniform, and from there the fiery hair you have been missing for the past couple of weeks.
“Are you here with me?” Rengoku raised palms open, showing that there was no threat.
You squinted. “Rengoku-san?”
“In the flesh! You can rest now.”
You shook your head, eyes fixed on the veil. “I can’t. Not until it’s all finished.”
The flame hashira observed the darkening bags beneath your eyes, and the trembles of your body. His vivid eyes watched as your usually nimble hands shake like leaves in the fall. He rested a steady hand over your weary ones.
“The battle ended some time ago,” he explained in an unusually soft voice. It was a soothing balm compared to the long night, alone in the chilly breeze. “You were not accounted for, and it was realized the messenger crow had been compromised.”
“It’s over?” You wheezed, and released the partition. As your body lost its stored tension, you felt a warm trickle down your chin. You wiped the liquid, red coating from your fingertips.
Rengoku looked at the blood intently as he reached into his pocket, pulled out a handkerchief, and pressed it into your hands. “Yes, for quite some time. You can rest now.”
As if your strings had been cut, your knees buckled. Rengoku’s arms caught you before you could hit the ground.
“S-Sorry…” You tried to rise back to your feet, one hand on his shoulder for stability, but the world was spinning and tilting and so dizzying.
“No need for apologies!” He assured, lifting you up into his arms.
You were too tired to fight it, and much too tired to make a stink about it. You simply wrapped your arms around his neck and leaned into him, much to Rengoku’s surprise. It was a nostalgic comfort, reminiscing of being carried in his arms some months before.
“Thanks for taking care of me. Now and back then,” you mumbled into his uniform, eyes heavy. The sway of the flame hashira’s stride was as comforting as it was before.
Only after hearing the sound of a sliding wooden door did you realize at some point you had drifted asleep. Rengoku had brought you to a small house, and was carefully lowering you onto a futon. You struggled against the heaviness of your body, enough to blink around and call out.
“Rengoku-san? Where…?
He smiled as he settled you in, pulling a blanket over you. “We are at a safehouse! You can rest easy here.”
The roar of the rain and the warmth of the blankets was enticing, ever so steadily pulling back into slumber. You sluggishly turn to lay on your side, trying to fight off the siren’s call. “I’m..sorry,” you whispered.
The flame hashira had just finished setting his own bed, only a foot away. He tilted his head sideways.
Pushing the heel of your palm into your teary eyes. “I wasn’t strong enough to keep going, I’m sorry.”
“That is no truth,” he leaned over, a single finger pushing away hair from your face, “You did exceptionally well!”
“To see such perseverance , striving to hold on despite the unknown… ignited sparks in my heart.” In a fit of boldness you had never seen in the demon slayer, he leaned in, the heat of his palm slipping into yours. It sent a bolt of electricity up your arms, leaving behind a trail of chills on your skin and warmth in your cheeks.
With your eyes so fixated on your intertwined fingers, you did notice Rengoku shift away and slipped under his quilts. He too laid on his side, his bright eyes blinking the sleep away. Glancing at your hands together he whispered, “You are safe, I am here with you.”
The warmth of his words bloomed in your chest. You squeezed his hand in return, and let it lead back to the weightless slumber.