Chapter Text
“I’m sorry!”
Of all the things Ivan was expecting from Mizi, an apology wasn’t one of them. He watched in a sort of detached shock as tears began to slip from her eyes, ones unaccompanied by any kind of overdramatic sniffles or sobs that were common in her breakdowns during their shared time at Anakt. This was genuine, but why? What reason would she have to guilt herself to the point of tears over him?
“What?” He murmured, still reeling from the unexpected outburst. She tried to compose herself, rubbing at her face in a futile attempt to wipe away the tears marring it as she took a shaky breath.
“I wasn’t fast enough to get to you during your round. I was on my way, but then Hyuna got shot and the alarms began blaring and you were gone before I could get back to you and I never even watched your performance and-and-!” She spoke fast, long enough that her breath fell short and her words began to slur, but in that cluster of information Ivan latched on to one thing.
“You were still alive?” When she lunged at Luka on stage, Ivan had given up all hope of her coming out with a beating heart. Even when she was declared missing, he hadn’t dared to hope. Not when the chances of surviving on her own were so little, and her mind was clearly still muddled with grief. He couldn’t risk that train of thought, not when his own round was so soon and he needed to prepare for his impending doom. Maybe Sua would have held out hope, but it was difficult to do that from a grave.
Mizi jerked up, wiping at her eyes one last time before giving up and letting the tears flow free. “Yeah, um. I was picked up by the rebellion after all of that. They’re the ones who caused all of the smoke.” That… made sense. There had been rumors of a rebellion long before Ivan was born, but the real one had been making big enough strides that even the most monitored of humans would have heard of them by the time he died.
Still, he was surprised that they managed to make it to the stage. With how much money the sponsors put in, he would have expected it to be nigh impossible to enter uninvited, especially when trying to reach the stage. And if he heard Mizi correctly, the rebellion not only managed to break in once, but two times. It was an impressive feat, even if they didn’t get to complete their goal.
There was just one thing left to ask. “How did the final go?” He needed to know. Luka was formidable, but Till put out far more heart in his music. That pure talent was bound to win a few people over, and if he got lucky, then maybe he lasted long enough for this ‘rebellion’ to get to him. Ivan really hoped the rebellion got to him. Till didn’t deserve to die as one of the dolls they were made into on stage.
Mizi blinked, shifting as the question registered in her mind. “Ah, Luka won.” Ivan’s heart fell into his stomach and he took a sharp breath. He was glad he was already sitting, because if he wasn’t then he was sure his legs would give out. He inhaled, trying to remind himself that this was expected, that it made sense, but knowing something could happen and hearing that it had were two completely different things. His hands tightened around the fabric of his pants and his jaw clenched hard enough to crack teeth.
Till was dead. Till. Was. Dead.
No matter how many times he mentally repeated those words, he still couldn’t seem to believe them. Not for the first time, Ivan found himself wondering why he was one of the ones chosen for this. Why he was here when Till was rotting on a stage in front of hundreds who wouldn’t mourn him.
His breathing started to come faster, but before it became hyperventilating, he felt hands grab his face with a burning touch and force him to look in Mizi’s green not yellow they were supposed to be yellow eyes. “Till is alive.” She put emphasis on the final word, and that was what finally got through to him. Seeing the new clarity in his eyes, Mizi decided to let go of his face, but her eyes were still locked onto his.
“Shit, I should have started with that. He lost and got shot-“ Ivan tensed up “but, he survived. The rebellion took him in, and he was there when I died which was years after everything. He’s okay.” Ivan relaxed subconsciously. The relief hit him, and he was almost lightheaded with the realization. He thought for sure that Till had been gone, cursed to end the same way as so many had before. Knowing that he hadn’t, that the man had moved on to be something greater filled Ivan with a sense of euphoria. Unexpected, but cherished nonetheless.
When the feeling passed, Ivan saw Mizi fidgeting with her hands. “What is it?” He asked, not bothering with any of the false pretenses he would use with the other hashira. She flinched, as if shocked he would notice the change in body language even though that was half of his training back then. Then she relaxed, exhaling shakily.
“Can I hug you?” It was impressive, how many times Mizi could send Ivan reeling in one conversation now. It wasn’t the question itself that did it, they were the two more tactile members of their little group, but it was the fact that there was a request at all.
Back in Anakt, there would be no asking to touch him. Mizi would come up and hug him, or jump on his back hoping for a ride, or draping herself over him akin to a cat. She would obviously respect boundaries of the few who set them, but if she thought of you as a friend then there was no escaping the invasion of space that came with that label. It was one of the things they had in common.
It seemed that time had taken her impulsive nature, similarly to how it had his, as she now seemed almost nervous to ask. If Sua knew about this, she would kill him for letting Mizi stew in her insecurities like this.
Calmly, Ivan held his arms out and nodded slightly, a silent agreement. Mizi’s arms came to wrap around him hesitantly, and his reached for her back. Then, the woman’s breath hitched, and the next thing he knew the air was knocked out of his lungs by the sheer force of her grip.
He didn’t pull away.
Her hold on him was tight enough to be painful, but he didn’t feel uncomfortable, or scared, or sad or anything else. He felt warm. He felt solid where before he felt like a droplet of water in the ocean. Impossible to catch and impossible to hold. But now, he felt physical, and oh, how he missed that sensation.
He held her tighter, feeling his shoulder get wet. It looks like she started crying again. At this rate she would get dehydrated.
Eventually, the hug did end and Mizi pulled away with a sniffle. She rubbed at her eyes again and this time no tears came after. “Sorry, I got your uniform wet.” Ivan waved her off. “I have others.” He reassured and Mizi smiled.
“I’m really glad you’re here, Ivan.” Her expression was filled with joy, melancholy hidden in the crease of her smile. There were so many words left unsaid between them, but right now, Ivan had never felt more open.
He wanted to enjoy the moment, he wanted to tell Mizi he was happy about her presence too, but a small voice in the back of his mind told him he was being too vulnerable. So, he leaned back, carefully avoiding the statement with a well placed smile. To change the topic, he decided to refer to their current state.
“If the rebellion saved you, then how did you die?” He wanted to see if there was any correlation between their deaths. To see why they were reincarnated when seemingly no one else was. From what she said earlier, it was safe to assume no one got her at the stage. So, if she wasn’t killed during her rescue mission, he couldn’t picture what actually got her after everything. The rebellion would have protected her and given her resources, so it’s unlikely she died from natural causes. She could have just slipped up on a mission, but something tells Ivan there’s more to it than that.
Mizi’s demeanor shifted subtly. The happy gleam in her eyes dimmed and her smile stretched a bit too wide to be real. Her eyes flicked to the side and back before she spoke. “I was careless and got caught. Nothing special, really.” She said that, but the discomfort in her movement suggested otherwise. Ivan chose not to pry, but he knew there was more to it than that.
“So!” She exclaimed, quickly turning to her previous cheerful demeanor. “What are you doing at the Butterfly Estate? You didn’t get injured so soon after leaving the meeting did you?” Her voice held a tone of worry, but her eyes were the picture of neutrality. He got the sense she was teasing him, but he refused to rise to the bait.
“I get migraines now. Kocho brought me here for medication.” Thats what he thinks is going on at least. There’s always the possibility that this was all a trick so she could make fun of him somewhere more private. Mizi’s face contorted to hold a smidgen of genuine concern.
“Oh. Is it still bad?” Ivan shook his head, the motion blessedly painless. “It died down a while ago.” Twenty-one minutes to be exact, but he didn’t think anyone would appreciate that bit of information. Mizi reverted to her original state and they spent the next few minutes catching up.
She told him of her family and ex-husband and in turn, he spoke of his sister and Urokodaki. They didn’t ever get too deep again, redirecting the conversation before ever reaching points of discomfort, but they understood each other in the too-long pauses that came and went. They understood by the grief Tsutako was presented beside and the utter disgust that came with Mizi’s ex. Eventually, Kocho returned, and they slipped back into the names of Giyuu and Mitsuri flawlessly.
“Sorry for the wait, the ingredients-“ Kocho cut off mid sentence upon seeing Mitsuri’s face, and the temperature of the room dropped. A shiver went up Giyuu’s spine as she turned to him slowly with an unmoving smile on her face. Her eyes were closed, but everything about her screamed danger. “Did you make Mitsuri-chan cry, Tomioka?” Her tone was cheerful, but nothing else about her was. Luckily, before she could eviscerate him, Mitsuri spoke up.
“No!” She moved to block him from view with her hands held up. “No, I’m fine Shinobu.” She reassured, before looking into the woman’s eyes with a bright smile. “I’m actually happy. Really happy.” The last part was only a whisper, but it was clear Kocho heard it from the way her eyes softened. She looked at him one more time, dissecting him for any hint of falsities before her expression returned to passive.
“Well, that’s good to hear then.” She turned to Giyuu. “Now, apologies for the wait, Tomioka-san.” She strode towards him and handed him a small wooden case. He opened it, and found multiple sealed vials of a lavender liquid. He took one out to take a closer look and saw minuscule pieces of ingredients he couldn’t recognize.
“Since you seem more aware, I assume your migraine has died down.” He lowered the vial and gave her his full attention. “But, in case one occurs during combat or when you are otherwise occupied, that should help it die down enough to focus.” She snatched the vial from his hand and shook it slightly to emphasize her next point. “Now, this is not meant to be taken orally. Doing that would likely cause the opposite of the intended effect. Instead, all you need to do-“ she held the closed vial up to her nose “- is hold it up like this, and inhale.” She mimed the action before lowering her hand and returning the vial to him.
“Obviously you need to open it first, but I’m sure you’ll be able to find something less fragile to store the medicine in later. You only really needed one, but the others are in case you lose, spill, or drink any of them. If you end up somehow losing them all, then come to the Butterfly Estate and we should be able to help you, but I don’t expect it to come to that.” The last part was said with a threatening undertone, but Giyuu only felt grateful.
“Thank you, Kocho.” He responded genuinely, before placing the vial into its wooden container and turning to look out the window. The sun was low in the sky now, he would have to leave immediately if he wanted to make it back to his estate before the next morning. He stood to leave and bowed at both women. “I have to leave, now, thank you for your time.” Kanzaburo was likely already on his way, but Giyuu hoped the crow hadn’t gotten lost again. Just as he placed his hand on the door he paused and turned around to Mitsuri.
He found a nearby scrap of paper and a quill and quickly wrote his address on it before handing it to her. “That is the location of my estate, if you ever want to talk more about…” he paused glancing towards Kocho “everything, then that’s where I’ll normally be.” Mitsuri smiled and closed her hand around the scrap with a smile.
“Of course. It was nice to see you again, Giyuu.” Subconsciously, a small smile was brought to his face. “You as well, Mitsuri.” He turned to Kocho who held a bewildered expression. Odd. “Thank you again, Kocho.” He expressed before finally leaving the building.
Hopefully he didn’t run into too many demons.
Giyuu took a deep breath as the yelling behind him began to fade.
He was glad the young slayer still had the energy to yell after holding out for so long, but he wished that energy was used for something more constructive than trying to fight everyone they saw. It wasn’t necessarily a bad mindset for slayers, as proven by Shinazugawa’s rank as a hashira, but it was clear this slayer hadn’t gotten to the point of limiting it to demons yet.
And yes, maybe tying them up had been a bit of an overreaction, but they were injured and Giyuu couldn’t risk being distracted when there were still higher rank demons on this mountain. They would be fine, the recovery team had arrived a while ago, so they should be let down soon.
He heard a pained scream and saw a burst of light from further up the mountain and ran to it. When he got there, he saw a familiar slayer under a web of threads closing in on him. He breathed methodically as he ran towards them and cut the threads at their source. He stood in a defensive position in front of Tanjiro and spoke.
“You held up well.” He complimented, looking into the eyes of Lower Moon Five and catching a glimpse of the boy’s sister suspended in the air. “Leave the rest to me.” He assured, snapping back to the demon and shifting his weight to his back leg.
The demon said something in response, but Giyuu didn’t hear it. Instead, he spent his time mentally logging everything he knew from the everything else he encountered on the mountain. The demon summoned a ring of thousands of string and the man took a deep breath and activated his eleventh form.
Lull.
He cut the strings with inhuman speed and returned to his original position as they all dissolved at his feet. The demon stumbled, muttering to itself in shock before holding up its hands in preparation for another attack, but Giyuu was quicker. In a flash he was next to the demon, and his katana cut through its neck like butter, leaving the head to tumble pathetically onto the ground.
He had expected a member of the Twelve Kizuki to be stronger.
He looked back to see Nezuko falling from her thread bindings nearby her brother and watched the detached body begin shambling over to the siblings as Tanjiro wrapped protectively around his sister before it collapsed and disintegrated properly. Giyuu moved closer with a detached sort of pity as Tanjiro placed a comforting hand on the clothing left behind by the demon. He supposed it made sense for the boy to be sympathetic considering his situation.
Giyuu wisely chose not to comment on it. “Can you move?” He asked, intending to send the duo to the nearest medics so they could be transferred to the Butterfly Estate. Tanjiro leaned back on his legs, still holding Nezuko in his arms. “I think so…” he looked up and recognition shined in his eyes. “Hey, aren’t you the slayer that sent me to Urokodaki sensei?” Giyuu nodded. “You should-“ he was cut off by a rustle in the trees and butterflies appearing from seemingly nowhere.
Giyuu only had a second to raise his katana and step over the siblings before Kocho descended from the tree line with her own aimed for the younger’s throat. A metallic CLANG rang out as they collided and the woman flipped over them, landing on her feet.
“…Why did you stop me Tomioka-san?” She turned, and with her ever present smile she opened her mouth and Giyuu quietly sighed as he braced for the insult. “That’s why Mitsuri’s the only one who likes you, you know.” He grit his teeth.
He knew he wasn’t the most liked among the hashira. He didn’t go out of his way to talk to the others and that rubbed some of them the wrong way. He would have to be a particular type of ignorant to not notice how Iguro would glare at him occasionally when Giyuu was spending time with Mitsuri, or when Shinazugawa would scoff at the mention of him. But still…
“I’m not that disliked.” He responded, matching her tone, and he heard Tanjiro release a noise of shock. She put a hand to her mouth in mock pity. “So you know you are disliked then?” She replied, never faltering as he felt his eye twitch.
When he chose not to reply again, she instead looked past him towards the siblings, and he shifted to block them from view. “Young man, you do know that you’re defending a demon, right?” She asked, and Tanjiro spoke up “Yes, she’s my sister!” He responded with a hint of fear. A bit of genuine pity entered her previously impassive eyes. “I see,” she raised her sword “-then I promise the poison I kill her with will be painless.” She declared.
“You said you could stand?” Giyuu asked before continuing without a reply. “Then take your sister, and run until you can’t.” He heard rushed thanks and heavy footsteps from behind him as Kocho watched them leave. Her smile stretched.
“That’s against Corps rules, you know.” She stated, and when he didn’t reply she leaped out of view. He quickly turned to find her bouncing between trees with impressive agility. He hurriedly ran to catch up and heard a huff from above him. “Is that really your attempt at catching me?” She teased while gliding through the air. Huffing, Giyuu took a deep breath and crouched as she hit another tree. He waited for her to reach the peak of her next jump before lunging and catching her in midair.
After moderate struggle, he managed to get Kocho immobile under his arm. While her smile was still present, he could see a vein popping out of her forehead indicative of her intense anger. “Tomioka-san, why did you stop me? I was trying to kill a demon.” She asked exasperatedly. He blinked, judging the seriousness of that question before begrudgingly answering.
“Because of something I saw a few years ago.” He explained vaguely. He couldn’t see her face, but the silence was indicative enough that she wasn’t pleased with that answer. “Please don’t start a long winded story. Are you angry about my comment earlier?” No, but as he came up with a retort, a blade emerged from the back of the Kocho’s shoe and suddenly came right towards his face.
Luckily, before his eye could be taken out, a kasugai crow cawed from above. “Message from headquarters!” The dagger stopped mere centimeters from his face. “Tanjiro and Nezuko Kamado are to be taken into custody and brought back!” The dagger lowered, and Giyuu released Kocho and moved back to sheathe his blade as she did the same.
Then, they slipped back to their usual dynamic as they split up to check on the Kakushi and directing any stragglers who weren’t on the brink of death to the Butterfly Estate. It took a few hours, but protocol for larger missions were typically the better part of them. It meant there was less room for error and it gave Giyuu a moment for his mind to rest while he thought about what he would have to do when they reached headquarters.
He sighed as the last of the team began to move out and he grouped up with Kocho to make their way to the Master’s mansion. It was reaching daybreak, so if he had to guess he had been on the mountain for a bit over ten hours. That was good timing for a mission that required hashira involvement, not to mention the defeat of a lower moon.
When he and Kocho entered the meeting grounds at midday, he saw Mitsuri staring at them with overplayed curiosity with an underlying concern. He and Kocho took their spots as a few other Hashira filtered in, kneeling in respect to the Master while varying levels of interest played out on their faces.
When an injured Tanjiro was brought in by a duo of Kakushi along with the wooden box that held Nezuko, Giyuu blinked slowly.
This was going to be a long day.